Tiny Humans
by Lucinders
Summary: Widower Owen Hunt and divorcee Cristina Yang meet through their children's kindergarten. Very AU.
1. Chapter 1 Of fish and hamsters

**A/N: This came to me while I was at the vet's office, waiting to take home my dog. Tell me what you think. This is AU, naturally**.

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><p>"Daddy," Matthew said. "Are we there yet?"<p>

"Just two more blocks, Matt," Owen Hunt said. "Are you excited for your first day of kindergarten?"

The blonde-haired, blue-eyed five-year-old nodded. He had been looking forward to this day all summer. As an only child, it sometimes got lonely and he desperately wanted to make new friends. Daddy was gone at work all day and he was tired of spending his days with the babysitter. Nina, his babysitter, was very nice but she wasn't a kid and didn't want to play all of the time, like he wanted her to do. He wanted to meet boys his own age, so he could have play and have fun.

Owen smiled at his son. He thought about his late wife, Miriam. It had been two years since she was gone. She had died of cancer. The last year of her life had been terrible, as he saw his once-vibrant wife wither away, right in front of him. Matt was only three when she died. He sometimes wondered if his son would remember much of his mother so he always kept her picture up around the house so that Matt could look at her face, whenever he wanted. Miriam would have loved to be there to take Matt to his first day of kindergarten, he thought.

He parked his car in the parking lot of Kingston Academy, a private school that took kids from kindergarten to Grade 8. It was very difficult to get into, and only the smartest, well-rounded kids gained entry. Even the kindergarteners had to do an entrance test, with only those scoring in the 90th percentile and up would be given an interview. Matt had scored in the 95th percentile and had done well at his interview. The only reason that Matt was going to this school was that Miriam felt that it would start him off well and give him the right footing in his academic life. Owen didn't really see what the big fuss was all about as he found the entry requirements for five-year-olds were ridiculously strenuous.

He held his son's hand as they walked together to the kindergarteners' classroom. He went straight up to the teacher's desk to introduce himself.

"Good morning, I am Owen Hunt and this is my son, Matthew, who is here for his first day of kindergarten," he said.

"Ah, Mr. Hunt. I am Miss Thompson," the bespectacled brunette said. "Let me take a look at my papers. Yes, Matthew Hunt. Here it is. We have all of your contact information. Just one thing, for security reasons, will you be the only person allowed to pick up Matt after school?"

"Yes, but if there is an emergency, I may designate my assistant to come for him but I will call first if that is a possibility," Owen said.

"Good. If you want to take a look around the classroom before you leave, you can do so. We have about half-an-hour again before school officially starts," Miss Thompson said.

"I would like that, Miss Thompson," Owen said, noting that there were other parents milling around the classroom.

He and Matt went to look at the hamster cage at one end of the classroom. There were two hamsters and the sign outside of their cage said their names were Stan and Ollie. Matt seemed fascinated by them.

Owen was distracted by the sound of a little girl's laughter. A pretty little girl entered the classroom. She had long, dark curly hair and hazel eyes and looked smaller than the rest of the children. She was clearly half Asian/half Caucasian. Then he heard a voice say, "Leah, wait for me." The little girl stood near the doorway, waiting for the person who owned the voice. A beautiful Asian woman with the same long, dark curly hair as her daughter, entered the classroom. She took his breath away.

"I keep telling you to stop running ahead of me," the woman said to Leah.

"I'm just excited, Mummy," said the little girl.

They both went up to the teacher's desk. Owen found himself eavesdropping.

"Good morning. I am Cristina Yang and this is my daughter, Leah Murphy," the woman said.

"Ah, this is little Leah, who topped all of the kids in the entrance test," Miss Thompson said.

"Well, I am just grateful that you all are accepting her, even though she is only four years old," Cristina said.

"Well, we at Kingston, recognize brilliance from an early age and Leah is showing that she is going to be an academic superstar. We are pleased to have her," Miss Thompson said. "Just a little housekeeping note here. For security reasons, will you be the only person coming to pick up Leah after school?"

"Yes, I am," she said.

"What about Leah's dad?" Miss Thompson enquired.

"Leah's dad and I are divorced. He lives about 40 miles from here," she said. "It could be the rare occasion that he picks her up if he is taking her to his house for the weekend. His name is Ian Murphy."

"Alright, then," Miss Thompson said. "If you want to take a look around the classroom before you leave, feel free to do so, Ms. Yang."

"Thanks," said Cristina, as she took her daughter to admire the fish. She noticed the tall handsome man with his blonde son at the hamster cage. If she was into dating and he was single, she thought she wouldn't have minded going out with him.

Since she and Ian had got divorced a year ago, she really hadn't been dating at all, especially as a single mom, taking care of a little girl. Ian would come by on Friday nights and pick up Leah to take her to his house for the weekend and drop her off on Sunday nights. So, while she did have her weekends free, she really didn't have the zest for dating right now.

The man smiled at her. She smiled back. She wondered which of the other ladies in the room was his wife. She looked at Leah, who seemed mesmerized by the fish. Her face was pressed against the aquarium.

She bent down to her daughter's height. "Leah, I have to go to work now. Will you be okay?"

"Yes, Mummy," Leah said. "I am so happy to be in school."

"Well, I will come and pick you up as soon as school is over," Cristina said, kissing her daughter on the forehead. "You will be alright."

"Okay," said the little girl, as she turned to watch the fish, once again.

As Cristina walked away, Owen found himself admiring the curve of her body in her short skirt and the smooth, slim legs. "Hmmm," he thought.

"Matt," he said. "There's a cute little girl at the fish tank. She looks lonely. Why don't you talk to her?"

"Daddy, she's a girl. I don't play with girls," Matt said, as he folded his arms.

"Well, she's littler than everybody else here. It must be scary for her. Why don't you just say hi?" Owen encouraged.

"Oh, alright," Matt said. He went up to Leah. "Hello, my name is Matt. Is this your first day here?"

"Yes," Leah said. "I am Leah. It's my first day, too. Do you like fish?"

"Yup, I love fish. I got a fish tank at home with lots of goldfish," Matt said, eager to talk about his pets.

Owen smiled, as he watched Matt and Leah engage into an intense conversation about taking care of fish.

Owen called out to Matt, "Buddy, I have to go to work, now. Will be back later to pick you up." He hoped that the woman, Cristina, would be there at the same time to pick up her daughter. He found himself a little bit excited at the prospect.

"Bye, Daddy," Matt said and he returned to his conversation about his fish.

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><p>Cristina arrived at her workplace at Fishburne &amp; Marshall Advertising, 15 minutes later. She was an advertising account executive, in charge of several major accounts.<p>

"So how was the first day of kindergarten?" her fellow ad exec Shauna Atkins asked.

"Oh, she took to it like a fish to water. Has been looking forward to this for weeks. Not a single tear was shed. Me, I was a little bit wistful because she is growing up so fast," Cristina said.

"Is she going to Ian's house this weekend?" Shauna asked.

"Yes. Despite all of our problems during our marriage, I must say that Ian is a good dad," Cristina said. "I have to give him kudos for that, even though I couldn't forgive him for cheating on me. No wonder I can't date; I just don't trust anybody anymore."

"So did you meet any of the other parents?" Shauna asked.

"Not really. But ooh, there was one gorgeous guy there. He had a little boy. Probably married to one of the other women there. Not that it matters, I am not even dating," Cristina said.

"Well, you better get back on the dating scene, Cristina. It has been a year since the divorce came through. You've got to get out there," Shauna sighed.

"I haven't dated since college," Cristina said. "That's when Ian and I met. I haven't dressed up for a guy in ages."

"You are a beautiful girl, Cristina," Shauna said. "There would be a line of guys, all ready to date you."

"I just am not ready to trust," Cristina said. "I have a little girl and I have to be careful who I bring into her life."

"I get that, Cristina, but you don't have to bring them into your lives. Date a few guys here and there. Get back into the groove. There is no commitment until you're ready," Shauna said.

Cristina nodded, thoughtfully.

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><p>Owen arrived at his workplace, Showalter Foods, twenty minutes later. His assistant, Miss Debbie Beasley, already had his coffee on his desk and there was a ton of paperwork already there. He groaned. He had recently been named as the vice president of marketing for the snack foods division at Showalter and while he was ready for the challenge, the amount of paperwork was overwhelming, sometimes.<p>

As he read the latest sales reports, his mind wandered about the woman he had seen at the kindergarten. He knew her name, Cristina and her daughter's name, Leah. She was divorced, which was a good thing, for a man wanting to get to know her better.

Owen had dated sporadically since Miriam's death. It was true that he had not been celibate but none of his dates had blossomed into long-term relationships. He had to think about Matt's welfare, if he was going to introduce a potential stepmother into his life.

His thoughts were interrupted by Debbie. "Mr. Hunt, I have rescheduled the meeting with the advertising agency for tomorrow at 10 a.m. They're going to present their ideas to promote the potato chip line. The meeting is in the conference room."

"Thanks, Debbie. That's fine," Owen said. The rest of his day was packed with meetings, meetings and more meetings. At 2.30, he grabbed hold of his jacket and headed down to his car, as he was going to pick up Matt and drop him off at home where the babysitter was waiting. He hoped he would catch glimpse of Cristina while she picked up her daughter.

Cristina had also left her office to pick up Leah. Unlike Owen, she would have to leave Leah in her office until it was time to go home.

He parked his car and looked out for the dark-haired woman. He saw her, waiting with the other parents. He went and stood next to her. She acknowledged his presence with a smile. He gave her his most welcoming smile. She wondered if she should say something.

When the children came streaming out of the school, they both looked out for their kids. Owen saw them first. They were holding hands. Cristina was shocked to see her little girl holding hands with this boy.

"Hi," Matt said. "Leah, this is my daddy."

"This is my mummy, Matt," Leah replied, as she hugged her mother's legs.

"Hey there, sport," Owen said, tousling his son's hair.

"Hey, baby," Cristina said, as she kissed the top of her daughter's head.

"I guess we should introduce ourselves," Owen said, putting out his hand. "I am Owen Hunt and this little slugger is Matt."

"I am Cristina Yang and this is Leah," Cristina said, as she simultaneously picked up her four-year-old and shook his hand.

"Well, it seems our kids are friends, we should be at least friendly," Owen grinned.

"I guess so, too," Cristina said. "I'll probably see you tomorrow morning."

"Looking forward to it," Owen said. He watched Cristina carrying Leah, walk away and get into her Honda Civic.

"Come on, Matt. Let's get you home," Owen said, with a smile, as he took his son's hand. His plan had worked perfectly.

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><p><strong>AN: Please leave your review. Thanks much.**


	2. Chapter 2 Friendship

**A/N: I have been sick over the past couple of days, so I have been heavily medicated on cold and cough medicine, which made me sleepy and unable to write.**

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><p>It had been two weeks since they introduced themselves to each other. Cristina found herself looking forward to the morning drop-offs and evening pick-ups so she could see and talk to the blonde man and his son.<p>

She was also glad that Leah had found a friend. She had worried about her, seeing that she was a year younger than her classmates and physically smaller than everybody else.

Owen also looked forward to seeing the dark-haired woman and her little girl. He started bringing an extra cup of coffee for her in the mornings. If one of them arrived before the other, they would usually wait until the next one arrived. It became that their day was not complete without seeing each other.

After they dropped off their children, they would sit in the park opposite the school, chatting and enjoying their morning cup of joe. They were really starting to enjoy each other's company – a lot.

Shauna, Cristina's colleague and friend, had noticed the change in Cristina, whenever she came from dropping off Leah. She seemed so upbeat.

"What's up, girl?" Shauna asked. "You seem so chipper these days."

"I'm just feeling good," Cristina said.

"There must be some reason that you're feeling so good. Spill the beans, Cristina," Shauna urged.

"Oh, alright. Remember I told you about how I saw this good-looking guy and his son, the first day I carried Leah to school. Turns out he's a widower and my little girl and his little boy have become friends, so we've kinda become friends, too."

"Ah, ha. Does this mean that you've dipped your toe into the dating waters again?" Shauna asked.

"No, he hasn't asked me out on a date. We're just enjoying each other's company for 15 minutes in the morning and 15 minutes in the afternoon. I don't think that constitutes dating," Cristina said.

"Okay, at least it is a step in the right direction that you're actually enjoying a man's company. The question is will you go out on a date with him if he asks you," Shauna enquired.

"Umm….I think so. There really is no reason that I should say no. There's nothing objectionable about him. He is good-looking, smart and we are able to talk to each other. I guess the answer to that is yes. But he hasn't asked me out as yet," Cristina said.

"Oh, it's going to happen. He apparently makes it a priority that he chats with you, both morning and afternoon, every day of the week. Trust me, he is building up to it," Shauna said.

"You think so? I haven't dated in so long that I can barely read signals from the opposite sex, anymore," Cristina said. "I was with Ian for seven years, five of those years being married and then he cheats on me and we get divorced. Then there hasn't been anybody for the last year."

"There could have been, Cristina. I have seen you turn down a whole bunch of guys this year," Shauna said.

"Well, I just haven't been ready," Cristina said.

"Are you ready now?" Shauna asked.

Cristina answered enigmatically, "Maybe."

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><p>Owen was at his desk, facing a ton of paperwork again. He never imagined that when he took on this job that it would entail so much paperwork. He thought about his morning coffee buddy. He was enjoying these morning time-outs with Cristina at the park. He could not believe that the highlights of his day were these morning drop-offs and evening pick-ups because he could see Cristina. He wondered if she would like to come over to his house for dinner.<p>

On his way to drop off Matt to school that morning, he decided to broach the topic with his son. "So Matt, what do you think about Leah and her mom?"

"Leah is great. She is not a girly girl. She likes some of the same stuff I do and she doesn't mind getting dirty. Do you know that Leah's eyes change color? Sometimes, it's green and sometimes it's brown," Matt said.

"That's because Leah has hazel eyes, Matt. Depending on the light, her eyes could appear green or brown," Owen said.

"I think that is so cool," Matt said. "My eyes are blue and that's it."

"What do you think about Leah's mom?" Owen asked.

"She's pretty and always nice to me. She gave me a lollipop yesterday. I like her, Daddy," Matt said.

Owen smiled. "What about if I ask Leah and her mom over to our house sometime? Maybe for dinner. Would you be okay with that?"

"Yup, Daddy. I want to show Leah my fish tank. She doesn't have any pets because her mom thinks she is too little to take care of them. She likes fish as much as I do," Matt said.

"Okay, I think I will ask them today," Owen said, now that he had gotten the full approval of his son. He would ask her when she came to pick up Leah in the afternoon.

The sound of his ringing phone brought him back to the present.

"Yes, Debbie. Did you send out the request for proposals to the advertising agencies, regarding the potato chip line? We really need some new ideas for that line and I am not pleased with what our current agency is doing," he said.

"Yes, sir. That was sent out since last week. I have set up meetings with three agencies on Friday so they can present their ideas," she said.

"Great, I really want to get that marketing campaign for that line started as soon as possible," he said. "We need to boost sales. We're getting some stiff competition from Drexyl Foods with their new line."

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><p>"So what are you working on?" Shauna asked Cristina.<p>

"Showalter sent out a request for proposals for their potato chip line. Going to work with the creative team to brainstorm some ideas. Apparently, their current agency bombed with its campaign ideas and they're looking for a new agency to handle this line. If we win this account, this is going to be huge," Cristina said.

"That would be super huge. Imagine the commission on that account!" Shauna said. "Good luck!"

"Thanks because we need it. Apparently, we're up against two other agencies on Friday to present our ideas for the line. It is going to be tough to win this account. We need to bust our balls to come up with something amazing," Cristina said.

"Can you do me a favor? Can you pick up Leah for me? I am not able to leave the brainstorming session. I will call the school and let them know so they will let you into the compound," Cristina continued.

"No problem," Shauna said. "Does this mean I will catch a glimpse of your blonde mystery man?"

"Probably," Cristina said. "He's always there to pick up Matt. Can't be missed. Blonde hunk of a man with blonde son. Pretty sure he is going to ask you something when he sees you with Leah."

"Let's hope because I want to check your guy out and give you my assessment," Shauna said.

"Okay, tell me what you think," Cristina said, with a grin. "I need to know if I still have good taste."

Shauna cackled as she headed out of the office to pick up Leah.

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><p>Owen was looking out for Cristina, as he parked his car. She was nowhere to be seen. He found this really odd that she wasn't there, since she usually was there before him, given that her office was closer to the school than his.<p>

There was a tall brunette woman eyeing him, slightly. He didn't know who she was, as he had never seen her there before. Shauna was indeed eyeing him but she hoped that she was being discreet. That had to be Cristina's mystery blonde, she thought. Clearly, Cristina's taste in men was still intact.

Owen was getting worried. Cristina was never late. He wanted to call her but he realized he didn't even have her phone number. He decided that he would stay with Leah until she showed up. It was important that she showed up because he wanted to invite her and Leah over to his house for dinner.

The bell rang and like clockwork, a stream of children started to exit hurriedly out of the building. Owen saw Matt and Leah. He called out to them. They came running across. And so did the tall brunette woman.

"Leah," the woman said. "I've come to pick you up."

"Oh, okay, Auntie Shauna," Leah said, as she took the woman's hand.

Owen was a little alarmed. Who was this strange woman?

"Excuse me, can I ask who you are?" he said. "Where's Cristina?"

"I am Shauna Atkins. I work with Cristina. She is in a meeting and couldn't come to pick up Leah, so she asked me to do so for her," she said.

Owen was clearly disappointed. The woman could see it in his face.

"Daddy," Matt said. "I told Leah that you were going to invite her and her mom over for dinner, so she could see my fish tank."

"Well, Leah's mom isn't here right now, so I can't ask." Owen said, a little embarrassed that Matt had spilled his plans to this stranger. "Maybe tomorrow, when she is here. Let's go home." He turned away, taking Matt's hand as they walked towards their car.

Shauna had to smile. Here was a juicy tidbit she could tell Cristina when she got back to the office. "Come on, Leah. Let's go see your mom," she told the little girl.

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><p>Cristina came out of her meeting an hour later. It was a very productive meeting and she was pretty sure that they were going to have a great presentation for Showalter that Friday.<p>

She found Leah playing on the floor of her office. "Hey munchkin, how was your day at school?"

"Great, Mummy. I want to go over to Matt's house to see his fish tank," Leah said.

"Well, we can't invite ourselves over to Matt's house like that," Cristina said. "We have to be asked first."

"Well, you are," Shauna said from the office doorway.

"I am what?" Cristina was puzzled.

"You are going to be asked over to their house. In fact, if you had gone to pick up Leah this afternoon, you would have already been asked," Shauna said, with a wicked smile.

"How do you know that?" Cristina wanted to know.

"His little boy ratted him out. He said that his dad was going to ask you and Leah over for dinner so she could see his fish tank," Shauna said. "It seems that your first date is going to have Leah and his little boy as chaperones. By the way, your taste in men is still A-grade."

Cristina laughed, anticipating what would happen the next day.

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><p>The next morning, Owen jumped out of his car, armed with his cups of coffee. "Come along, Matt," he said. "Let's look for Leah and her mom."<p>

His face broke out into a huge smile when he saw her, heading into the building. He was so disappointed that he hadn't seen her the day before.

"Cristina," he called out. She turned around and gave him a smile.

"Hey there now," he said, as he handed her the cup of coffee. "Missed you yesterday."

"Yeah, I am working on a presentation for a potential new client," she said. "We were having a brainstorming session and I couldn't leave. My friend, Shauna, picked up Leah for me."

"Yes, I met her," he said. They walked their children to the classroom and kissed them goodbye. Usually, Owen would linger a bit to see that the children were settled down but not this morning. He was eager to be alone with Cristina.

"Let's go over to the park," he said, taking her elbow and guiding her across the road to their favorite bench.

They sat, drinking their coffee quietly. He was feeling nervous. Why was he feeling nervous like a foolish schoolboy? He had asked women out before. Why was asking this particular woman so nerve-wracking?

"Umm.." he started.

"Yes," she said. "What's on your mind?"

"Matt and I were wondering whether you and Leah would like to come over to our house for dinner tonight," he said.

"Hmm," she said, staring into space. She knew that the question had been coming. She wondered if she should make him suffer a little.

Was that all she was going to say, he thought. He looked at her face for any hint of what she was thinking.

"Okay," she said.

"Okay? Okay! Great. Why don't you come over at 6.30 p.m? This is my address and phone number," he said, handing over a piece of paper. "Can I get your phone number?"

She gave it to him, as she watched him punch it into his phone.

"So we're all set for tonight. Right," he said, feeling relieved that she had agreed.

"Yes, we will see you tonight," Cristina said.

Though she didn't say anything, she was just as nervous as he was. My first date in eight years, she thought.

He reached over and squeezed her hand, as they tentatively smiled at each other.

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><p><strong>AN: Please leave your reviews. I really like to read your comments.**


	3. Chapter 3 Dinner at his house

He left work a little earlier than he normally would. When he arrived at home, he found the chef he had hired was already hard at work. The chef was actually preparing two menus – one for the grown-ups and one for the children – both pasta dishes. Spaghetti and meatballs for the children and for the adults, linguine alle vongole.

Owen asked, "Giorgio, how is everything going?"

"We're doing well, Mr. Hunt. Everything will be ready by the time your guests arrive," Giorgio said.

"I must apologize for the short notice," Owen said.

"That is okay, Mr. Hunt. You are one of my best clients. It is a pleasure for me to do this for you," Giorgio said.

"Thank you, Giorgio. I guess I better go freshen up for my guests," Owen said.

He went looking for Matt and Nina, his babysitter. He found them in his bedroom, playing with Matt's trains.

"Daddy," Matt said, as he got up and hugged his father.

"Hey, Matt. Hello, Nina. I see Matt is ready to greet our dinner guests," Owen said, as he inspected his freshly bathed and dressed son. "Thank you, Nina, as always for taking care of Matt."

"I guess I better be going," Nina said. "Have a great time, Mr Hunt, with your guests."

"Thank you, Nina," Owen said, as he watched Nina head down the stairs to leave.

"So, Matt," Owen asked. "Are you excited that Cristina and Leah are coming over?"

"Uh-huh. I can show Leah my fish tank. I keep telling her about how great it is but she has to see it to know. We're trying to get her Mummy to let her get one goldfish in a bowl," Matt said.

"Well, I think that the two of you will be able to persuade Cristina," Owen said, ruffling his son's blond hair. "I am going to take a shower and get dressed."

"Okay, Daddy," Matt said, as he returned to play with his train set.

As Owen emerged from his shower, he wondered what he would wear. It was a casual evening. He finally decided on a blue shirt and khaki pants. He was giving his hair a comb-through when he heard the doorbell. His guests were here.

He hurried down the stairs but was beaten to the door by Matt. "Hi Matt," he heard Cristina say.

"Hello," Matt said, pulling Leah into the house. "Come on, Leah, let's go see my fish tank."

"Hey," Owen said. "Not so fast, Matt. Hello, Cristina. Gosh, you look pretty." She was wearing a blue dress. Was it coincidence that they were both wearing the same color, he wondered.

Cristina blushed. "Thank you, Owen. You look pretty nice yourself, too."

"Thank you," he said. "Welcome to my humble abode."

"It's not so humble. It is absolutely palatial. My two-bedroom apartment is nothing like this," she said.

"It is a five-bedroom, five and a half bath house, 4,500 square feet. Would you like a tour?" he asked. Cristina nodded.

"Can we go now?" Matt piped up.

"Yes, Matt," Owen said. Matt did not need to be told twice as he held on to Leah's hand and ran off into the direction of his playroom.

"This here is obviously the living room," Owen said. Cristina could not help but notice the picture of the attractive, blonde woman on the fireplace mantel. She assumed that it was Matt's mom. Owen followed her gaze and knew what she was looking at.

"That is my late wife, Miriam – Matt's mom. She died two years ago. Matt was only three when she died, so I like to keep her picture around so he could always remember what she looked like," he said.

"You don't have to explain anything to me," she said. "Our kids are friends and we're just friends."

He was taken aback by her response. Is that what she thought this was? A friendly dinner between parents who had children in the same class? He knew he had to break that perception as soon as possible.

As he took her around the house, she quietly noted that there were many pictures of Miriam, Miriam and Owen, Miriam and Matt. She knew she shouldn't feel like it but she felt strangely jealous. She had absolutely no right to feel that way because she had no claim to this man and his son, she rationalized to herself. Yet it was a niggling feeling that just didn't want to go away.

"Giorgio should be finished by now, so let's just get the children and have our dinner," he said, leading her to Matt's playroom.

"Hey kids," Owen said. "Time for dinner."

"Mummy," Leah said, pulling her mom into the room. "Look at Matt's fish tank. See how be-yoo-ti-ful it is?"

"It's very beautiful, Leah," Cristina said.

"Look at all of the colorful fish. See how pretty they are. This fish tank is even better than the one they have at school," Leah said.

"Yes, I can see that," Cristina said.

"Mummy, I want a fish at home," Leah said. "I want my own fish. I want a goldfish. I will call it Blondie."

"Are you sure you're going to take care of it?" Cristina said. "You're going to feed it, everyday. We don't want to come home one day and find it floating in its bowl because you forgot to feed it."

"No, Mummy," Leah said. "I will feed my fish, every day. Can I get one fish? Please?"

"Okay, one fish. We will see how if you can take care of it. If you're doing a good job, we may get more fish," Cristina said.

"When you get more fish, I will help you set up your fish tank," Owen volunteered, immediately. "I set up this one so I am sure I can help you setting up your fish aquarium."

"Thank you, Owen," Cristina said. "But that will be a while yet. We have to see if Leah is able to take care of her one goldfish."

"Okay, guys, time for dinner," Owen said. Leah held on to her mom's hand, while Owen took hold of Matt's hand. They stopped at the hallway bathroom so everyone could wash their hands before dinner. Cristina really appreciated that Owen was instilling good hygienic habits in his young son.

As they sat down for dinner, Giorgio brought out his pasta dishes. First, he served the little ones their spaghetti and meatballs and then he brought out the linguine alle vongole for the adults. He bade them farewell, after he served his dishes.

"Ooh, clams. I love them," Cristina said.

"Giorgio is an amazing chef. I called him, as soon as you guys said you were going to come over tonight," Owen said.

"You hired a personal chef just because we were coming over?" Cristina asked.

"Yes," Owen said. "Only the best for my ladies." Owen wanted to take that back, as soon as he said it. "My ladies? What am I thinking?" he wondered.

Cristina heard it and smiled. "I am just glad that you think us worthy of you hiring a personal chef. Leah and I will try to be good guests."

"Well, you are," he said, as he poured a glass of white wine for her. He looked at the two children, who were very busy eating their spaghetti and meatballs. Tiny Leah had tomato sauce smeared around her mouth and on her cheeks. He leaned over and gently wiped her face with a napkin. Cristina found this action so endearing.

"Thank you," Leah said.

"You're very welcome," Owen told her. He looked at his son, who seemed to be handling his meal a little better than his younger friend. "Are you alright, Matt?"

"Yes, Daddy. This is dee-lish-us," Matt said, slurping a strand of spaghetti from the side of his mouth.

"So, Cristina, do you like the linguine alle vongole?" he asked.

"Very much, Owen. I must compliment the chef," she said. "What are you doing, Leah?" She had spied her young daughter pushing a meatball with her nose.

"Just doing it like the dog in The Lady and the Tramp, Mummy," Leah said, tomato sauce smeared across her nose.

Owen could not stop laughing as he got another napkin and wiped the tomato sauce off Leah's nose.

"I am so sorry about that, Owen," Cristina said. "I think I taught her better manners than that."

"Oh, don't apologize. That was the best laugh I got for the day," he said.

Cristina started to laugh, too. Then the two kids started laughing, when they saw their parents laughing. Clearly, something was funny.

After the meal, they all had ice cream for dessert. Everyone got two scoops of chocolate and vanilla. They were all so full by the time the final bit of ice cream was eaten.

* * *

><p>While the children played in Matt's playroom, the adults shared a cup of coffee in the living room.<p>

"I really want to thank you for coming," Owen said. "This has been one of the best nights I have had in a while. Usually, it is just Matt and me on evenings. There is only so much I can talk about on train sets and action figures. I guess I crave some adult conversation, sometimes."

"I know how you feel. Leah and I talk about fairytale princesses and Barbie dolls and lately, she has been talking about fish," Cristina said.

"I meant what I said earlier," he said. "About setting up the aquarium. I can do that for you."

"Thank you but I want Leah to learn some responsibility about taking care of one fish before we bring a whole big aquarium in the house. She is only four years old," Cristina said. "I guess we better head home, soon. I don't want to overstay our welcome."

"No, you're always welcome here. Feel free to come back, anytime," he said.

"Oh, you can't be saying such things before I set up myself in your beautiful house," she said, joking.

He laughed, too but in reality, he really didn't mind seeing Cristina and Leah in his house. The place needed a feminine touch, he thought.

Cristina got Leah from the playroom, as Owen and Matt walked them out to their car. After strapping Leah in her car seat, Cristina turned to Owen and thanked him for his hospitality.

"This was very nice, Owen. It's not often I get to spend the night out," she said. "I guess I will see you tomorrow morning at drop-off time."

There she was again, chatting like if we're just parents with children in the same class, he thought. He felt he needed to kiss her to get rid of that notion out of her mind. He looked into her eyes.

Was he going to kiss her, she wondered. Her question was answered within the next second as she found her lips being covered by his own. If she kissed him back, Owen thought, then he knew that she was into this as much as he was. He was gratified when he found her responding to him.

"Ew, ew, ew, ew," Matt said, covering his eyes.

Little Leah shrieked from her car seat, "TV kissing, Mummy. You're doing TV kissing."

They both ignored their children and continued to kiss. When they finally broke away from each other, their eyes were shining.

"Yes, I will see you tomorrow morning," he said.

She got into her car and as she drove away, she looked back at the tall blonde man and his son. She felt exhilarated.

Owen took Matt's hand. "Let's go in, son." He was happier than he had been in a very long time.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Please leave your reviews. I do appreciate reading all of them.**


	4. Chapter 4 Misunderstandings

Last night had gone really well, Owen thought. The family date was a success; he hoped that he could her ask her out on a one-on-one date the coming weekend. He felt they needed some private time to get to know each other better without the presence of the children.

He was headed to the school to drop off Matt, after having first picked up the two steaming cups of coffee at Starbucks. He arrived in the parking lot, looked around for Cristina's car and found that it was not there. She had not arrived as yet.

"Come on, Matt, let's go to your classroom and wait for Cristina and Leah," Owen said. The little boy followed his dad to his classroom.

Matt put down his knapsack and took out his coloring book. Owen stood at the back of the class, waiting for Cristina. He put down the coffee on a table.

"Mr. Hunt," a blonde woman said to him.

"Yes," he answered, turning to face her.

"Mr. Hunt, I am Clarissa Jones and I am in charge of the charity drive for the school," the woman, taken aback by how handsome the man was. "We're aware that you are an executive at Showalter and I was wondering whether you would be able your company would be able to make a substantial food donation for the campaign. We're planning to give to a food bank for the needy."

"I am sure that our company would be able to make a donation on behalf of the school," he said. He dug into his wallet and took out a business card. "Just give me a call and I will put you in touch with our corporate communications department and they will do the needful."

"Ooh, that's so good of you," Clarissa said, laughing flirtatiously, as she reached out and stroked his arm, lingering there a little longer than necessary. Owen laughed, nervously, thinking that this woman was a little forward.

Cristina and Leah had just arrived just in time to observe what Cristina thought was a flirtatious exchange between Clarissa and Owen. Cristina, who had so many trust issues because of her ex-husband's cheating, found herself feeling upset.

"Mummy, there is Mr. Hunt," Leah said.

"Yes, I know. He looks busy. We won't disturb him," Cristina said, quietly. She ensured that her daughter was settled before she left.

Owen wanted Clarissa to just go away. He was getting tired of waiting of Cristina and this woman was just going on and on. He turned around and was surprised to see Leah, sitting down next to Matt at their table.

"Excuse me, Miss Jones," he said. He walked over, quickly to Leah and Matt.

"Leah, where is your mummy?" he asked, looking around the classroom.

"She left," Leah said, looking up at him.

"Didn't you all see me there?" he asked, surprised that Cristina had not made her presence known to him.

"Yes," Leah said. "She said that you looked busy."

Owen left, hurriedly. He was so flustered that he had forgotten his two cups of coffee in the classroom. He got into his car and got his phone to call her. There was no answer and the call went straight to voice mail.

"Hey," he said. "Why didn't you let me know you were here? Call me, please." He stared at the phone, wondering whether to give it a second try, before deciding to finally to go to work.

Cristina, who was already on her way to work, had ignored the call. She saw Owen's name and refused to answer it. She was convinced that he was a player. He had the audacity to be flirting with that woman right in front of her, when he had kissed her last night. She had no time for guys, who were juggling more than one woman, she thought.

She arrived to work, still feeling upset.

Shauna greeted her, noting her foul mood. "What's the matter, Cristina? How was your family date last night?"

Cristina gave her a look that made Shauna aware that she should not press for any answers.

"Well, okay, then," Shauna said.

"Can you do me a favor?" Cristina asked.

"Sure, what's up?" Shauna said.

"Can you pick up Leah at school for me this afternoon? I have a lot of work to do on this Showalter presentation," Cristina said. While she did have to work on the presentation, picking up Leah would not have affected her ability to complete the work.

"Sure, no problem," Shauna agreed, though she wondered whether that was the real reason that Cristina was asking her to pick up Leah. She had the sneaky suspicion that Cristina was trying to avoid the blonde man. She wondered if the family dinner date had gone badly.

Owen and Cristina both spent their day, buried in their work. At lunchtime, he considered calling her, as he had not heard anything from her for the morning. He told himself that he would talk to her during the pick-up session this afternoon. He would get to the bottom of this.

At the afternoon pick-up session, he kept looking around for Cristina. The bell rang and a stream of children exited the building. He noticed the brunette woman, who had picked up Leah, earlier in the week. He was disappointed when he saw her. Her presence meant that Cristina was not there.

He saw Matt and Leah and he called out to them. They came running to him. The brunette came over.

"Leah, I am here today to pick you up," Shauna said. She felt bad to look at the blonde man because clearly, something was going on with Cristina.

"Is Cristina busy?" he asked.

"Yes," Shauna said. "She is working on a presentation for a client on Friday."

"Okay," he said. He took his son's hand and headed to his car. After strapping Matt in, he decided to give Cristina another call. Again, there was no answer. "Come on, Matt. Let's go home."

* * *

><p>The next morning, he again started looking out for Cristina but after waiting 30 minutes, he realized that both she and Leah were not going to show up that day. He was right about that because it turned out that little Leah was sick. Cristina had been forced to stay with her and work from home. She was in constant contact with her office as they worked on their presentation for the Showalter account.<p>

Owen again called her and left another message. "Hey, Cristina, where are you? I didn't see you bring Leah to school this morning. What's going on? Please call me."

Cristina listened to his message. She shrugged off the yearning that she felt to give him a call. She turned her energies into work and taking care of a sick Leah.

Leah had come down with a terrible cold and was absolutely miserable. She was crying and wanted Cristina to tend to her every need. She was a difficult, whiny patient because she was so congested and was unable to breathe. Cristina breathed a sigh of relief when Leah fell asleep. She could finally get her work done.

Owen was back at his office, wondering what he had done wrong. The last time he saw her was the night of the family dinner date and he felt things had gone really well. Then, the next day, it seemed to have all fallen apart. It was the second day that he was not going to see her and he missed her.

Cristina worked arduously that day to ensure that everything would be ready for the presentation with Showalter. Their appointment was at 11 a.m. on Friday, the last of the three agencies.

* * *

><p>On Friday morning, she arranged with her neighbor to stay with the still sick Leah. She had to go to work because their presentation was later that day and she had to ensure that their advertising collateral and mock advertisements were ready. She and her creative team practiced their presentation.<p>

Owen noted that morning that Cristina and Leah again did not show up at school. He sighed. He could not wait around, hoping that she would show up, since he had a full morning of meetings with advertising agencies, presenting their pitches for the potato chip line.

He and a team of marketing executives would be listening to the various agencies – Ace Advertising at 9 a.m., Torry & Torry at 10 a.m. and Fishburne & Marshall at 11 a.m.

Even if his personal life seemed to be a mess, his professional life was thriving. Sales were increasing in all of his product lines, except for that troublesome potato chip line. It had been a best seller until it started getting competition from some new entries in the market and sales had stagnated. They needed something to revive the sales of the line and there was hope that with the introduction of inspired new flavors, they could recapture the market they had lost. He was looking forward to the agencies' ideas for the product re-launch.

The first two agencies had presented really great ideas. Owen was impressed. This last agency had to pull out all of the stops if they had to beat the first two agencies, Owen thought. The team from Fishburne & Marshall started to enter the room – a team of two men and a woman.

It was the woman that caught his eye. It was Cristina. So Showalter was the client whose presentation she had been working on. Maybe it was really true that she was too busy and maybe he hadn't done anything wrong, he thought, hopefully.

Cristina, at first, did not even notice Owen sitting among the group of executives. It was when she started to introduce the members of her team that she noticed him sitting there, giving her a huge smile. She did not smile back. She could not forget him, flirting with that woman at the school.

The presentation went really well, Cristina thought, despite the presence of Owen. She wanted to smack that smile off his face. Owen, on the other hand, could not help but smile whenever she caught his eye. He was just so pleased to see her; he had missed her that much.

The team ended its presentation, packed up its advertising material and left. Owen quickly rang his secretary to tell her to stop Ms Yang from Fishburne & Marshall so she would not leave as yet. As the rest of the executives vacated his office, he called her in.

"Hey, wasn't this a coincidence?" he said, walking to greet her. He took her face into his hands and kissed her. She did not kiss him back, even though her body wanted to respond.

Stung by her lack of response, he pulled back from her, "What's wrong?"

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Please leave your reviews. Thank you for your comments. I do appreciate reading all of them.**


	5. Chapter 5 Clearing the air

Owen stepped back from her and stared intently into her eyes, "What's wrong, Cristina? What have I done?"

She remained silent. How could he be so dense, she thought.

Since she wasn't saying anything, he continued, "The last time I saw you was our family dinner date. As far as I can tell, it went well. Then the next day, I was waiting for you in the classroom and then you came, didn't tell me you were there and then you just disappeared on me.

"I have been calling you and you haven't returned any of my calls. I haven't seen you for the last two days, until this morning when you show up for this presentation," he said. "Which I must say was a pleasant surprise for me."

Her face gave nothing away.

He again re-thought the week's events. Cristina disappeared after she saw him chatting with that fund-raiser from the school. Leah had told him that her mother had said that he had looked busy.

"Wait a minute," he said. "You dropped off the radar after you saw me with that woman – that school fundraiser. What was her name again? Jones," he said. "Did you think that something was going on between us?"

Cristina's eyes showed a trace of emotion.

"That's it, isn't it?" he said. "What do you think was going on? I just met that woman that morning. She wanted a donation from the company for the school's charity project. I know what you saw. But she was the one flirting with me, not the other way around. I couldn't get away fast enough for that woman. I was hoping that you would turn up and rescue me from her.

"But no, you drew your own conclusions and disappeared on me. Why would you think something like that? What would make you think that I am that kind of man? I kissed you the night before. Why would I be flirting with another woman?" he asked.

She blinked. She realized she had been wrong about what she saw. She knew her perceptions had been colored by what had happened with her ex-husband.

"I apologize," she said. "I think I may have jumped to the wrong conclusion."

"But why? Have I ever given any indication that I am a player? I am a widower with a five-year-old son and it hasn't been easy trying to find someone that I could bring into his life. You are the first woman I have ever introduced to him and invited into our home," he said.

"I have major trust issues," she said. She was going to admit to something that she barely told anyone. Other than with her friend, Shauna, she had not ever discussed why she and Ian had got divorced.

"What?" he said. "What do you mean?"

"I have trust issues," she repeated. "I don't usually talk about why my husband and I got divorced. He cheated on me with a colleague from his office. It wasn't just once he cheated on me. He was having a full-blown affair. When he finally wanted to end it with the woman, she did not take it very well.

"I would have never known about the affair and we would have gone on as normal, were it not for the fact that she called me and told me every sordid detail of what they did together. Ian told me that the affair had meant nothing to him. But I told him if it had been a nothing affair, why would he risk our marriage on it?

"In any case, we did try for a while to get past it but I found that I couldn't forget. It was too difficult for me. Every time he went anywhere without me, I would get paranoid that he was seeing someone. Then, I would check to see if he was watching or flirting with other women. I just couldn't trust him anymore. And when you lose trust in a relationship, it is very hard to get it back and you just aren't able to move forward. That's why I asked for a divorce.

"So when I saw that woman with you, touching your arm and laughing, I had a flashback to Ian. My hackles went up. I needed to protect myself from any potential hurt. So I left before I could get hurt."

He listened intently to her. He touched her face and gently caressed her cheek.

"First of all, I now understand why you felt the way you did. But just remember this. I am not your ex-husband. I am not going to do to you what he did to you. I am not going to betray you. I want you to trust me. I have no interest in Miss Jones; she was the one doing all of the flirting. And it was all unwelcome from my perspective," he said.

"Secondly, why didn't you come to me, if you were feeling this way? I could have explained everything to you in an instant. But you shut me out and you didn't even give me the opportunity to let me know what you're thinking. I want to know what you're thinking when it comes to you, me and the kids. I want to have a real relationship with you," he continued. "You can always talk to me."

Cristina felt a little bit foolish but she knew it was unfair to judge Owen by what Ian had done. She looked up into his eyes.

"I can't promise that I am going to get over my trust issues, any time soon. But what I can do is let you know what I am feeling. I can at least promise that," she said.

"Okay," he said. "That's all I ask." He put out his hand for her and as she took it, he pulled her in for a hug.

"You smell nice," she said.

"Thank you, I do try," he said. "By the way, where have you and Leah been? You guys weren't in school yesterday and today."

"She's sick. She has a cold and has been very needy. She keeps crying because she can't breathe and she wants me to hold her," Cristina said. "I stayed home, yesterday to take care of her. A neighbor is seeing about her today, since I had to come in for this presentation."

"Aw, poor Leah. Doesn't she usually go to her dad's for the weekend? Is she too sick to go?" Owen asked.

"No, Ian will come for her and take care of her at his house. Even though he was not the best husband, Ian is a great dad and for that, I am grateful," Cristina said. "I am pretty sure by the time she comes back on Sunday evening, she will be fine. He always used to take care of her when she was sick. She loves her daddy."

She thought for a moment.

"Owen, if we're going to try this whole relationship thing, it is not going to look good that you are the VP of marketing and I am one of the account executives fighting for this account. I can't have you being accused of nepotism," she said.

"The contract will be decided by a committee of five people. All those executives that were in here this morning will decide who gets the account. I will not have the only vote in the decision," he tried to reassure her.

"I want to give my agency a fair shot at the account and I want to avoid the issue of you being accused of having a conflict of interest," she said. "So I am going to pull myself off of it."

"If that is what you want," he said. "But you don't have to." Even though he didn't say it, he was a little pleased that she was worried about his reputation.

"I will let Shauna take over the account for me," she said. "I prefer keeping our relationship intact than being in charge of the account. You have met Shauna, already."

"Yes, I have. But when I see her, it is usually not a good thing for me. That means you're not there and I won't see you," he said. "I've nothing against Shauna but every time she comes to pick up Leah, I am so disappointed."

"Well, if my agency wins the account, you will be seeing a lot more of Shauna," she reminded him. He nodded.

He looked at her, "Well, since we're going to give this relationship thing a shot, don't you think we need to go on a real date? One without tiny people, hanging around and monopolizing our attention. I want a date where we concentrate on just each other. How about it?"

She smiled. "I'm game. Tell me the date and the time."

"How about tomorrow night at 8? Leah will be at her dad's and I will get Nina to stay with Matt," he said. "I want a night where we can dress up for each other."

"Okay," she said. "It's a date." She laughed.

He felt happy. For the first time in two years, he actually felt excited about a new, prospective relationship. Things were finally looking up in his personal life.

Cristina, on the other hand, still had her reservations. She had been hurt badly before and had her heart broken by a man she had loved and trusted. She could admit to herself that she liked Owen and liked him a hell of a lot. She only hoped that she was doing the right thing for herself and Leah.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Please leave your reviews. I enjoy reading all of your comments. Thank you.**


	6. Chapter 6 First date

Cristina looked at herself in the mirror. First real date in years. Yes, they had that family dinner date but it wasn't a real one-on-one date, where it was just the two of them.

She wondered what to do with her hair; she decided to put it up. He had only seen her with her hair down. She had taken out three dresses. A slim-fitting lavender dress, a cranberry strapless dress and navy blue knit dress with long sleeves and plunging neckline. She decided on the cranberry strapless dress. She started working on her hair and makeup.

At his house, Owen was also staring at his wardrobe. Should he go with the black suit, the navy blue suit or the charcoal grey suit?

Matt wandered into his father's room. "What are you doing, Daddy?"

"I'm trying to pick out a suit to wear for this date I have with Leah's mom," Owen said.

"Date?" Matt enquired.

"Yes, I am taking Cristina out to dinner. That's why Nina is here to stay with you while I am out," Owen said.

"Will Leah be there?" Matt asked, wondering whether he had been left out of the night's excitement.

"No, no. Remember Leah didn't show up to school for the last two days. She has been sick. She is with her father, tonight," Owen said, trying to reassure Matt that he was not being ignored.

"Well, what should I wear, Matt?" Owen asked.

Matt pointed to the charcoal grey suit. "That one, Daddy," he said, solemnly.

"Thank you, son. You have been a big help," Owen said, as he picked up the Armani suit and started getting dressed. Paired with a light grey tie, white shirt and dark shoes, he was ready.

He got into the car and was on his way to Cristina's apartment building. He felt a little nervous. Armed with lilies he had bought at the flower shop, he made his way up to the fifth floor to Apartment 502.

He rang the bell. She opened the door. She made him gasp. The cranberry color of the dress went well with her dark hair and eyes, while its strapless style exposed the perfect complexion of her neck and shoulders.

"You look gorgeous," he said, drinking in every inch of her with his eyes, as he handed her the bouquet of lilies.

"Thank you," she said. "I tried. You look very handsome, too."

"Aw, this old thing," he joshed. "I had a hard time, picking out which suit to wear. Matt chose it for me."

"Well, Matt has good taste because you look really great. Good grief, where are my manners? Come into my tiny abode. Of course, it is nothing like your mansion but Leah and I are okay here," she said, ushering him into her living room. It certainly was very much smaller than his house, but it was clean and nicely decorated.

"And yes, I cleaned it up before you got here," she said. "Being a working mom with a little girl doesn't leave much time for housekeeping duties. So it is in a lot better shape than it usually is. You wouldn't want to see it in its natural middle-of-the-week state."

"It's very nice," he said.

"You don't have to lie to me. It can't ever measure up to your place but it is good enough for Leah and me," she said.

"I am not lying. I like it," he said. "I certainly like the two people living here. They are both beautiful and wonderful people."

"Thank you. I am sure that Leah would appreciate being called beautiful," she said.

"And what about her mom?" he asked.

"Her mom greatly appreciates it, too," she said, smiling up at him.

"By the way, how is the little munchkin?" Owen remembered that Leah was sick.

"She's actually doing quite well. She called me this morning to say she was feeling a lot better and her daddy was taking her to the zoo," Cristina said. "I am sure by the time she comes back tomorrow, she will be in rip-roaring shape, ready to go back to school on Monday."

"So, shall we head out, now?" he asked.

"Yes, as soon as I put these lilies in some water. They are lovely. Thank you," she said.

When they arrived at the restaurant, he pulled out her chair for her and ordered some white wine for the both of them. Cristina was feeling nervous, well, a lot nervous. The last man she had ever gone out with was her husband. The last time she actually went out on a date was back in college.

Her hand shook a little as she held her wine glass. He noticed.

"What's the matter?" he asked, concerned.

"I am a little bit nervous. That's a lie. I am a lot nervous," she confessed. She put down the glass, in case she spilled it. "I haven't been on a real date in years. The last time I dated was in college, then I got married. I never had a really long dating history."

"But you've been divorced for a year. You haven't dated since?" he was surprised. She was an attractive woman and he was pretty sure that there were guys, who had asked her out. He could not have been the first.

"Well, I just wasn't ready. I was deeply hurt by the demise of my marriage and I just couldn't face the dating game, again. As I told you, trust is an issue for me, now," she said. "Guys asked me out but I had always turned them down, till you."

"Well, I am extremely flattered that you chose me as your first real date," he said. "You weren't nervous at the family date, though."

"That's true because Leah and Matt provided a kind of buffer for me. Their presence made it easier because we had to put them as a priority for our attention and take care of their needs. Now they are not here to distract and without them, I am kind of exposed, right now. I have to rely on my less-than-dazzling personality to keep you interested and not let you think that you made a big mistake by asking me out," she said, with a little nervous laugh.

"I am certain that it was not a mistake, Ms. Yang. And your personality is dazzling enough for me," he assured her. "What about me? I am in the same boat as you. So let's take the time to get to know each other, without kids, without work distractions, without school distractions, without the limited time that we usually have to see each other. Tonight, my lovely lady, is just about you and me."

"Okay, then, it is a deal," she said, as she raised her glass to him. "Here's to three weeks of knowing each other."

"Three weeks, huh? I know you but I really don't know you. I don't know about where you grew up, your family, where did you go to college, your favorite kind of music, what do you like to do in your spare time. That kind of stuff," he said, as he clinked his glass with hers.

"Okay," she said. "Let's do the whole first date run down. I grew up in Austin, Texas, with my super-achieving mom and dad. Dad is a computer genius, mom is a professor at UT. Nice neigborhood, good schools, pretty ordinary upbringing.

"I have no siblings. Parents were too busy with their careers to have more children. I also went to school at UT at the College of Communication. Do you know that hottie actor, Matthew McConaughey went to school, there too? Always hoped that he would come and visit. But alas, it never happened.

"My favorite kind of music is more classical. That's from years and years of piano lessons. I don't have much spare time because I have a kid but I do like to write. Not much to tell, I guess," she finished.

"Matthew McConaughey? You like that guy? Isn't he a pretty boy? I was hoping you would prefer a more manly kind of guy," he said, with a grin.

"Yeah, he is but the guy has pretty amazing abs," she chuckled.

"Pffft. I can show you some real abs," he said.

"I bet you can," she said. "Is that a promise?"

"Yes, and I always keep my promises," he said, cocking one eyebrow.

"Well, I think I have something to look forward to," she smiled, sweetly.

The rest of the evening went splendidly. The food was impressive and they even ended the night with some dancing. As they waltzed to the live band, he was intoxicated by her scent and started kissing her on her neck. She got immediate goosebumps from his kisses.

She sighed, contentedly and looked up at him.

He bent down and kissed her, right there, in the middle of the dance floor, in front of everyone. It started off, tenderly and deepened, as she began to respond to him. They just continued dancing and kissing. When the music stopped, he gently pulled away from her and stared into her eyes. "This is just perfect," he said.

They drove home in relative silence, holding hands, only releasing when he had to change the gears. When they arrived at her apartment building, he got ready to leave the car to walk her up to her apartment.

"Don't," she said. "I am going to walk up by myself."

"Why?" he said, a little confused.

"Because if I allow you to walk me up to my apartment, I would be tempted to do things that I am not yet ready to do. First, you'll start kissing me and then we make it through my door and then I will probably allow you to make wild, passionate love to me," she said.

"And is that a bad thing?" he asked, smiling.

"No, in fact, it is a very good thing. I want to be able to do that with you, but I am not ready, right now," she said. "I am actually looking forward to it with great anticipation."

"So our night ends here?" he said, wistfully.

"Yes," she said, as she leaned over to kiss him, taking his face into her small hands and gently claimed his lips with her own. "Thank you for a great first date. Good night."

"Good night, Cristina. It was perfect," he said, as he watch her leave the car and then walk to her building.

"Hey," he called out. She turned around.

"When does Leah come back tomorrow? We could go out for a family dinner date and grab some pizza," he said.

"She comes home at 5 p.m. I would like that. You can come and pick us up at that time," she said.

"Okay. See you tomorrow," he said. With a light, joyous heart, he drove back to his house.

* * *

><p>The next day, he and Matt picked up Cristina and Leah for their family dinner date. They decided to go to one of his favorite pizzerias. As he picked up their order, the girl behind the counter asked, "Is that your family at that table? They're gorgeous."<p>

He looked around to see Matt and Leah, torturing Cristina by trying to jump on her. He was going to go through the whole explanation that Matt was his son, Cristina was his date and Leah was her daughter. But he changed his mind.

He turned back to the girl and simply said, "Yes."

"Your son looks just like you and your little girl has the same hair as her mom. They're so cute," the girl said.

"Thank you," Owen said, with a smile, as he headed to their table.

"Pizza, guys!" he said, enthusiastically.

"Yay!" both Matt and Leah yelled at the same time.

As everyone took a bite of their slices, he looked at them with pride. So people thought that they were a family. He really liked that thought.

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><p><strong>AN: Please leave your reviews. They are what keep me going.**


	7. Chapter 7 Halloween

She was determined to be a zombie princess for Halloween. No amount of persuasion worked in trying to get Leah to change her mind. Every princess costume they found was pink and pretty and that would not do for Leah's zombie princess.

Cristina was forced to make it herself, using grey, black and silver chiffon with a black underlining to create the dress. The sewing almost killed her but she managed to do it. Everyone wanted to know why such a pretty little girl would want to be a zombie but Leah was a determined little soul. As she explained, "Not just a zombie, a zombie princess."

Owen and Cristina were carving pumpkins on his kitchen table, talking about their children's choice of costumes. It was the day before Halloween and they were going to decorate Owen's walkway to his door with pumpkins. The children had offered to help but both Owen and Cristina didn't trust their children with knives. So the kiddies were in Matt's playroom, playing with his toys.

"The things we do for them. As a novice in the sewing arena, that zombie princess costume nearly ruined my fingers but as long as she is happy with it, I am happy," Cristina said, as she cleaned out the seeds out of another pumpkin. This pumpkin carving was turning out to be hard work.

"Thankfully," Owen said. "Matt is interested only in superhero costumes, which are easy to buy. But he kept changing his mind. First, he wanted to be Superman, then Spiderman, then Green Lantern and finally, he decided on Batman. Hallelujah. We kept going to the store over and over again. I think they were starting to hate us there. I am hoping he doesn't have another change of heart by tomorrow because there will probably be nothing left at the store."

He looked at her, struggling to cut through a large pumpkin but she was unwilling to ask for any help. She was as determined as her daughter, he thought. He loved that about her. It was now coming on to nine weeks since they first met. They had already been on 10 family dates and eight one-on-one dates. Still, they had not yet made the final intimate step. They had come close to it but Cristina had always drawn back. He didn't want to push her. He wanted her to be ready because he knew it was a huge step for her and wanted to make sure that it was her decision.

By midnight, they finished their pumpkins and Cristina picked up her tiny daughter, who was already asleep, and headed back to her apartment.

The plan for Halloween was that Cristina and Leah would come across to join Owen and Matt to go trick and treating in his family-friendly neighborhood, while they left Nina to greet any little costume-clad children, who came to their door. When they were done trick and treating, Nina would leave and they would take over the candy duties at the house.

By 6 p.m. Cristina and Leah were at their house. Cristina had straightened her hair and was in full garb as Morticia Addams, while Leah was still very cute as a zombie princess, complete with tiara and ghostly grey makeup and fake blood.

"My, what a sexy Morticia Addams and a cute-as-a-button zombie princess," Owen said, when he opened the door for them.

"I am not cute," Leah said. "I am scary." She then put up her arms in the air, curled her hands like claws and started to plod heavily across the floor.

"Well, okay then," Owen said. "What a scary zombie princess."

"You're not too bad yourself – looking suave as Gomez Addams. Really like the dark mustache. Where is Batman?" Cristina asked, as she stepped into the house.

"He has been waiting for a half-hour, all dressed up, waiting for you all to get here. I think he may be pouting in the kitchen," Owen said. "Let's go get him."

"Is Nina here already?" Cristina asked, following Owen to the kitchen.

"Yup, so we can leave as soon as we get Matt," Owen said.

They found Nina and Matt at the kitchen table, sorting out candy for the kids that they expected to come by.

"Wow, Matt, you are definitely the most handsome Batman ever," Cristina told the little boy. "I think you can come and save me anytime you like."

Matt grinned and ran across to Cristina and hugged her legs. "Your hair looks different," he said.

"I straightened it so I could look like Morticia," Cristina said. "Do you like it?"

"Yeah, it looks nice but I like your curly hair better," Matt said, inspecting Cristina's hair.

"Okay, a Batman who is also giving hairstyling advice. That is awesome," Cristina said, as she gave the boy a kiss on his head. "That's okay. I like my curly hair better, too."

"So are we ready to leave? Nina, are you alright with everything?" Owen asked.

"Yes," Nina said. "Don't worry. I have enough candy ammunition here to keep all the little witches and vampires happy."

"Alright, folks, how many streets we're going to hit?" Owen asked, as he handed each of the children their jack o' lantern candy pails.

"All of them!" Matt yelled, running to the front door, followed closely by Leah.

"We will see," Owen said. "Wait up, buddy." As Nina watched them leave, the thought crossed her mind how much they looked like a family.

The streets were filled with lots of little ghouls, ghosts and goblins. Matt held on to Cristina's hand, while Owen held on to Leah's tiny hand as they went from house to house. They let the children go right up to the doors, while they hung back a little bit.

Owen's neighbors called out to him, when they saw him and they wondered who was the woman dressed like Morticia. The widower had long been considered a catch in the neighborhood and some of the newly single women (after their divorces) were disappointed to see him, acting like a family man with this strange woman and her child. She was obviously not from their neighborhood because they had never seen her before.

The children's candy pails filled up quickly and as they walked through the many streets, Leah's stamina began to flag. "I am tired, Mummy," she said, putting up her arms to be lifted.

"It's okay, Cristina. I got her," Owen said, as he picked up the little girl. No matter how tired she was, she refused to give up her candy pail to anyone else and held on tightly to it.

"I think we should head back," Cristina said. "That's more than enough candy for the two of them."

"Yup, I think so," Owen said. "Matt, let's go." Matt ran back to them and slipped his small hand into Cristina's. They all walked backed to Owen's house, just in time to see a group of kids leaving.

They stepped into the house. "I am so glad that we're back," Cristina said. "It was starting to get a little chilly out there." The children immediately disappeared into Matt's playroom. The almost instantaneous sound of the television signaled exactly what the children were doing.

"How was it, Nina?" Owen asked, as he watched the girl go to the closet to get her jacket.

"It was fine. Had a whole bunch of kids come through already. Anyway, gotta run, going to a hot Halloween party with my boyfriend tonight. I have to get dressed in my costume. I am Lieutenant Uhura and he is Captain Kirk," Nina said, as she hurried out of the door.

"Well, she couldn't get out of here, fast enough," Cristina said, laughing. "Since they're doing Star Trek this year, maybe we should do Star Wars next year. You could be Han Solo and I will be Princess Leia."

Did she say next year, Owen thought. That meant that she thought that they would still be together by then. The idea warmed his heart.

"Yup, I think I would make a dashing Han Solo and you would be a beautiful Princess Leia. I can just imagine you with the cinnamon rolls hairstyle. Just magnificent," he said, laughing. She gave him a light lash on his arm.

"Ouch," he said, jokingly. They were interrupted by an impatient doorbell.

"Ah," Cristina said. "Our first customers." She opened the door and was greeted by the chorus of "Trick or Treat?"

Owen brought across the candy bowl and started depositing candy into each of the pails. "Thanks, mister," said the little fireman, as the children left their doorstep.

It was an endless parade of children and as the night progressed, the numbers grew less and less. Cristina was glad because she was getting tired. She was starting to fall asleep and decided to close her eyes for a minute. Without her realizing it, she fell asleep on an armchair.

As Owen gave out the last of his candy, he noticed the dozing Cristina on her chair. They had already placed the children on the bunk beds in Matt's room and they were already fast asleep. Normally, Cristina would just pick up a sleeping Leah and drive back to her apartment.

Owen turned off the lights and decided to carry Cristina up to his bedroom. She was obviously too sleepy to drive. He picked her up and laid her on his bed. Even with all of the Morticia make-up, she still looked lovely. He stroked her cheek. He brushed his teeth, changed into his pjs and got in next to her. She unconsciously spooned him.

Later that night, she woke up, a little startled. She was clearly not at home in her own bed. She could feel the warmth of Owen's body next to her. She went to the bathroom, removed her makeup, found an unopened toothbrush in his draw and brushed her teeth. She took off her Morticia dress and put on one of his t-shirts, which was oversized on her, and fitted her like a nightshirt. "Perfect," she thought.

She went back into the bed and slipped in next to him. She listened to his even breathing and found it comforting. She had not shared a bed with a man, since her husband. Quite frankly, she missed it. She snuggled her body into him and breathed in his masculine scent. It was quite an incredible turn-on, she thought.

She lightly kissed his back and slipped her hands under his t-shirt. He opened his eyes as he felt her small hands on his skin. He knew his body was already reacting to her touch. He turned around and kissed her. She kissed him back, ferociously. He kissed her back with as much enthusiasm. He put his hands up her t-shirt and felt her bare breasts, rubbing her nipples so that they were rigid from his touch. He pushed down her underwear and quickly slipped them off her legs, then raised her t-shirt over her arms. Between kisses, he hurriedly got his pjs off. She could feel that he was more than ready to do this, as her hand stroked his already erect and hardened member.

"I have been waiting for this for a long time," he said, as he hungrily kissed her.

"Yeah, I can tell," she said. "Me too." He touched her between her legs and found her very wet and ready for him.

"Oh, I can't wait anymore," he said, as he reached into his bedside table and pulled out a condom, ripped open the package with his teeth and slipped it on as fast as he could.

As he entered her, she gasped loudly, while he groaned with pleasure. He started slowly, building into a rhythm as he pounded into her. She had not had sex in more than a year and she could not believe him how much she wanted him. As he thrust deeper and harder into her, she screamed with pleasure. When they came, it was such a major physical release for the both of them. As he rolled off her, they looked at each other as they both tried to catch their breath.

She started to laugh. He was a little confused. She saw his perplexed expression.

"I am just laughing because I realized I am going to do the walk of shame up to my apartment, dressed as Morticia," she said. "That will be a sight."

He laughed, too. He pulled her closer to him and said, "Thank you, baby."

"You can show me your gratitude by doing it to me again," she said, stroking his chest.

"Anything you want," he said as he turned to kiss her, once more.

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><p><strong>AN: Please leave your reviews. Thank you. I really appreciate reading your comments.**


	8. Chapter 8 Meeting the Hunts

"What are you doing for Thanksgiving?" Owen asked Cristina, as the holiday was looming within the next week.

"I had planned to visit my mom and dad in Austin," she said. His heart fell a bit.

"But," she continued, "My parents dropped a surprise on me and shattered my plans. They are going on a Thanksgiving cruise in the Caribbean. So Leah and I will be celebrating Thanksgiving at home."

"No, you're not. You're celebrating Thanksgiving with Matt and me," he said. "And my family."

"Your family?" she questioned.

"Yeah, in my family, every year, we celebrate Thanksgiving by rotating the dinner at someone's house. Sometimes, it is at my parents or my brother's or my sister's. This year, it's my turn," he said.

"How many people will be at the Thanksgiving?" she asked. She didn't know whether she was ready to be overwhelmed by meeting all of Owen's family.

"Well, the dinner participants include my parents, my brother and his wife, their three children, my sister and her husband and their two children, Matt and me and hopefully, you and Leah. That will be 15 people in all," he said. "Don't worry, the children will have their own table."

"That's a lot of people," she said. "It sounds like a family celebration. I am not sure if Leah and me would fit in."

"Yes, you would," he said. "Please, it will be a lot of fun. My family is fun. And Leah will have a lot of kids to play with. I want to share Thanksgiving with you. I want my family to meet you."

"I will think about it," she said, still not convinced that she should be part of this celebration.

"Okay but please," he pleaded. "You won't have to do any cooking because I am hiring a chef and his team to handle that."

"That sounds tempting," she said. She paused. She really didn't have a good excuse to say no and Leah would enjoy playing with a lot of other children, she thought. "Okay, I've thought enough. Alright, Leah and I will be there."

"Thank you. You won't regret it. My family will love you," he said.

She gave him a weak smile; she wasn't as convinced as he was.

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><p>Leah chose a chocolate brown velvet dress belted with a cream sash. Cristina looked at her wardrobe, she wasn't sure what she was going to wear. She wished she could have been as decisive as her four-year-old, who knew exactly what she wanted to wear.<p>

Cristina wanted to make a good impression because she knew she was going to be judged and compared to Miriam, whom they all loved. She knew she looked best in jewel tones, so in the end, she choose an amethyst colored slim-fitting sheath.

She drove over to Owen's house, a bit apprehensive, while Leah was excited at the prospect of meeting all of Matt's cousins. "I get to play with lots of other kids, Mummy," Leah said. "That would be so good."

"Yes, baby," Cristina said, absentmindedly. Leah continued her chatter right up to when they reached the front door of Owen's house. Cristina noted that there were three other cars parked in the driveway, besides her own. It seemed like she was the last to arrive.

She rang the doorbell and she could hear a lot of laughter and music from the inside. She heard Owen's voice say, "That's her, folks, so we can start dinner in a little bit."

He opened the door and he was taken aback by how pretty they looked. "Cristina, you look breathtaking. Leah, you too, you're lovely."

"I know," Leah said, most confidently, as she stepped into the house. "Where's Matt?"

"He's in the playroom with the other children," Owen said. Leah took off like a bullet and headed straight to the playroom.

Cristina stepped into the house. She felt strange because even though she had been to the house many times and had even slept over on occasion, it felt like it was the first time she was there.

There were six strangers in the living room, standing or sitting, each with a drink in their hand.

Owen took her hand and took her forward. "Cristina, I would like you to meet my family. My mom and dad, Ellen and James Hunt. My older brother, Joseph and his wife, Sheila. My younger sister, Grace and her husband, Philip. Everyone, this is Cristina Yang and the little girl that just ran past you is Cristina's daughter, Leah."

Owen's mom, Ellen, got up from her armchair. "Cristina, so pleased to meet you. Owen, you didn't tell us how lovely she is." She had the same striking blue eyes as Owen. Cristina was going to shake the woman's hand but she found herself enveloped in a hug.

Owen's dad also came and shook her hand. "Very nice to meet you, Cristina. You're the first woman since Miriam that he has ever introduced to us, so you must be special to him." Cristina also received a hug from James.

Grace got up, smiling. "Great to meet you, Cristina. You have the most gorgeous hair I have ever seen and that body is amazing. I can't believe you have had a child with that body. You must let me know your secrets. I still haven't been able to get rid of this stomach, since my last child and that was five years ago." Grace's husband politely shook her hand.

Owen's older brother, Joseph, came forward and offered his hand for her to shake. "Good to finally meet you, Cristina. My brother mentioned that he met someone and apparently, you seem to make him happy. He hasn't stopped smiling, since you've arrived." His wife, Sheila, gave Cristina a quick hug and a reassuring smile. She seemed to understand how overwhelming it was for Cristina to meet the family like this, given that Sheila had that same experience, many years ago, when she had to meet the Hunts.

After all of their greetings, Cristina said, "It is a pleasure to meet everyone. I just wished my daughter hadn't whizzed by like that, I would have liked to introduce her."

"That's okay," Grace said. "We will meet her, soon enough. Sheila, let's go get the children and set them up on their table." Grace and Sheila headed to the playroom to round up the seven children.

The rest of the adults headed to the dining room. Owen ushered Cristina to a seat next to him at the table. His parents occupied both ends of the table. Sheila and Grace returned with the children and placed them at their own smaller table. The children ranged in age from four to nine, with Leah being the youngest and smallest in stature. But Cristina knew that even though Leah was the smallest, she was not going to be the most timid.

"I would like to sit over there," Leah told Grace, pointing to a chair in the corner.

"Why, Leah?" Grace asked.

"So I can look out and see everything," she explained.

"I want to sit next to Leah!" Matt shouted, loudly.

"Matt," Owen admonished. "Stop shouting. Let our guests choose where they want to sit, first."

Matt pouted but allowed his cousins to take their seats before him. As he had expected, he didn't get to sit down next to Leah. His cousin, Frankie had taken that seat and had given him a triumphant grin because he knew it would just irritate his younger cousin. Matt glowered in anger but he took the last remaining seat without fuss. His father would not appreciate him, behaving badly when they had so many guests over.

The catering staff came out and started serving everyone. The meal, as always when done by Chef Georgio, was delicious. Cristina found the banter between the Hunts engaging. They tended to tease each other a lot and Owen, as the middle child, revealed that he was the brunt of many practical jokes. They reminisced about some of the pranks they used to pull on him when they were kids.

"It's okay, now," Owen said. "Being the person who got all of the teasing, made me able to take all that stuff I deal with on a daily basis in the workplace. I didn't get to be vice president of the division without having to take my knocks. That teasing toughened me up."

"Aw, my poor boy," Ellen said. "He was such a sweet, chubby little kid. Then he grew up, got into wrestling and football and became all muscled out. He outgrew Joseph and then they couldn't mess with him, anymore."

"You were chubby?" Cristina asked, hard to imagine that her muscled lover was once a fatty.

"Yes, I was. I loved food. I still do but I exercise it all off now," Owen said, laughing.

"So, Cristina," Grace asked. "What do you do?"

"I am into advertising. I am an ad exec at an advertising agency. My agency works with Owen's company to produce some of their campaigns," Cristina replied.

"So, is that where you met Owen?" Sheila asked.

"No, we met at Matt and Leah's school. They are in kindergarten, together. We met the first day of their school term," Cristina said. "Apparently, they became friends, so Owen and I became friends."

"Hmmm," Joseph said. "Cristina, I think you were had. I think that friendship between your children was orchestrated by my little brother."

"Me?" Owen said, feigning innocence. "How would I ever do such a thing?" He laughed.

"So, it's true?" Cristina was surprised.

"Well, I saw this gorgeous woman and I just wanted to meet her, so I may have encouraged my five-year-old son to start up a conversation with her four-year-old daughter. Nothing wrong in that, is there?" Owen said.

"Hmmm," Cristina said. "You're more devious than I thought."

"Not devious," Owen said. "I use my resources well and make the best out of my situation. Besides, it all worked out fine, didn't it?" He reached out and tenderly kissed her hand. With this public display of affection, his family clearly knew that Owen was completely smitten with this woman. His mother expected that some time in the future, this woman was probably going to become part of their family, if things continued to work out between them.

When the dinner ended, they all retired to the living room for coffee, until the couples and their families left, leaving only Owen and Cristina and their children in the house. Matt and Leah had already fallen asleep and were put to bed.

Owen brought out a couple of blankets and laid them out in front of the fireplace. They both lay down, with Cristina resting her head on his chest. He put his arm around her and pulled her close. They had drunk quite a bit during dinner and they were feeling a little bit tipsy.

"It was a successful night, right? They didn't scare you?" he asked.

"No, it was a less anxiety-filled night than I thought it would be. Your family was very nice to me," she said.

"My mom told me that she likes you and she said she's happy because you make me happy. She said she hadn't seen me smile like this in a long, long time," Owen said. "It's true, by the way, you do make me very happy."

"I am glad I can do that for you," she said, unbuttoning his shirt and caressing his chest.

"I hope I am doing the same for you," he said, as he brought out another bottle of wine and poured out a glass for her.

She drank the glass in one. "Ooh, that tasted good," she said. "Fill me up again." He also filled up a glass for himself and before they knew it, they had finished the bottle of wine. They were both feeling so warm and comfortable in front of the fireplace, that they started making out. Making out progressed to making love, as they eagerly shed their clothes. Exhausted from their love-making, they both fell asleep in front of the fireplace.

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><p>She was being shaken awake. Cristina opened her eyes to see Leah's tiny face, just mere inches from her own.<p>

"Mummy, wake up," she said. "Matt and I want to know what's for breakfast."

As Cristina's eyes focused, she could finally make out that Matt was standing behind Leah. She immediately realized where she was, as she remembered the night's events in front of the fireplace. Thank God, she was under the blanket because she was stark naked. She could also feel that Owen, too, was nude under the blanket.

"Leah, did you brush your teeth?" she asked.

Leah showed off her sparkly baby teeth with a beaming smile. "Yes, Matt and me – we brushed our teeth. We just want our breakfast."

"Leah," Cristina said. "Mummy just has to get herself together, here. Why don't you and Matt go to the playroom and I will call you when I am finished with breakfast?"

"Okay," Leah said, running off to the playroom with Matt.

Cristina shook Owen awake. He groaned. "Get up," she said. "We are naked on the living room floor and the children are already up."

Owen opened his eyes in a panic, as he realized his state of undress under the blanket. They both began scrambling around for their clothes. She wrapped herself in one blanket, while he took the other blanket to cover his body as they made a swift beeline to his bedroom. They were laughing, hysterically by the time they got there, collapsing on to his bedroom floor.

"Imagine if we didn't have the blankets and they both saw us in our birthday suits," Cristina said. "Just imagine the shock on their little faces. We would have never been able to live that down."

They took a quick shower, changed into some clothes and went to the kitchen to make their children breakfast. When the children came for their breakfast, they looked at their parents, who seemed to be suffering from the giggling fits.

The children were unamused, given that they had to wait nearly an hour for their breakfast. What was so funny?

"Whatever," the two children thought.

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><p><strong>AN: Please leave your reviews. I do appreciate reading all of them.**


	9. Chapter 9 The holidays

Owen was excited.

Tonight was the kids' Christmas pageant. It would probably be the first of many Christmas pageants he would have to attend over the years. Matt was a shepherd while Leah was cast as the angel who told the good news to the shepherds in the fields. The children were very excited, especially Leah, who would be suspended from a little height and then, lowered slowly.

Owen was going to meet Cristina at the pageant. He had gone home, took a quick shower, dressed Matt in his costume and drove to the school. He saw Cristina's car already in the parking lot. He wasn't surprised because her apartment was closer to the school than his house.

He went to the auditorium and handed over Matt to his teacher backstage. He saw little Leah, in a white robe and angel wings. She waved at him. He waved back at the little girl. She looked so pretty. He loved her like if she was his own.

He also loved Leah's mother but he had never said it to her. Neither had Cristina. He knew it would be difficult to get such a declaration from Cristina, given her history with her husband and her trust issues. He looked out for her in the audience. It was easy to spot her shiny, ebony curls. She was sitting between two empty seats. He eagerly went to her and occupied one of the empty seats.

"Hey, there," he said, giving her a kiss on the cheek. "This is so exciting. My first Christmas pageant with my son."

Cristina smiled back at him. "Yup, Leah said she was going to fly. I told her they were just going to lower her from three feet in the air on to a box and then she could say her lines. She was disappointed. She thought she was going to fly like Peter Pan."

"That Leah, she has the spirit of an adventurer," Owen said. "I can't imagine what she would be like when she is a teenager. She is going to give us a lot of trouble."

Cristina realized what he was really saying with that statement was that he wanted to be around for a long time. She squeezed his hand.

A woman came up and asked if the empty seat next to Cristina was available. Owen was about to answer in the affirmative, when he saw Cristina shake her head. "No," she said. "It's taken. Someone is coming."

Owen was surprised. Cristina never mentioned inviting someone else. She looked at him and answered his question without him asking, "Ian is coming. He is driving up and I am saving this seat for him."

"Oh," Owen said. So Leah's dad, Cristina's ex was coming. This would be the first time he would ever meet Ian Murphy. He felt a little bit uneasy.

Two minutes before the pageant started, Owen noted a tall, good-looking man wave at Cristina. She waved back at him.

"Hey," the man said, as he took the seat next to Cristina. He had sandy brown hair and hazel eyes – the same hazel eyes that Leah possessed.

"Hi," Cristina said. "You just made it in time. Oh, this is Owen Hunt. Owen, this is Ian Murphy." The two men politely shook hands.

"Owen's son is also in the pageant. He is a shepherd," Cristina told Ian.

"So we're all proud parents here," Ian said. Owen was surprised that Cristina did not explain who he really was to Ian that he was her boyfriend, her lover. It hurt him a little.

The school was filming the pageant and any parent who wanted a DVD could get a copy, however that didn't stop the eager parents from snapping pictures whenever their baby would come on stage.

When the shepherds came on the scene, Owen got up and took his obligatory shots of Matt as Shepherd #1. Then, Leah made her grand entrance as the angel, who brings the news of Baby Jesus' birth.

Leah hovered about three feet from the ground. The audience heard the little girl go, "Whoa!" Everyone laughed. As soon as she appeared, Ian grabbed Cristina's hand and squeezed it. Owen noticed this and was taken aback by his action.

Leah was gently lowered on to a box, where she started her speech. Ian got up and took a few shots of his little girl.

She started, "Fear not, good shepherds. I have great news. Today, in Bethlehem, a child was born. He is our King and our savior."

Matt, as Shepherd #1, answered, "Where can we find him?"

Leah, the angel replied, "You will find the babe, wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger." She pointed with her little arms the general direction where the baby could be found. That was the end of their scene. The curtain dropped to change the scene to the stable.

"She was so good!" Ian said to Cristina. Cristina agreed. She turned to Owen, "Matt was great, too." He nodded, pleased.

Their children later appeared in a stable scene with the shepherds, wise men, sheep, cows and Jesus, Mary and Joseph. They didn't have any lines but were just in the scene. The curtain closed and the little actors all came out for their final bows.

The kindergarten production received a rousing round of applause from all of the proud parents. Cristina and Owen went backstage to collect their children.

"How did I do, Mummy?" Leah asked, as Cristina changed her out of her costume and into her normal clothes.

"You were wonderful, Leah. Daddy's here, he came to see your play," she told the little girl. Leah's eyes lit up, when she heard her dad had come to see her.

"Can we go get ice cream with him?" she asked, jumping around.

"Okay, if that is what you want," Cristina said, pulling a t-shirt over Leah's head.

Owen, who was also changing Matt into his clothes, said, "You were so good, Matt."

"Thank you, Daddy," the little boy said. "Can we go for pizza?"

"Yes," Owen said. "I will ask Cristina and Leah to come with us."

"Yup," Matt said. "Leah was good as the angel."

"Yes, she was," Owen said.

"I need to use the bathroom," Matt said. Owen took the little boy and took him to the restroom. When they came out, he looked around for Cristina and Leah. They were nowhere to be seen. He was going to call her when he got a text message, "Ian is taking us to the ice cream parlor."

Owen and Matt headed out to their car. "Where's Cristina and Leah?" Matt asked.

"Leah's dad was here and he took them out for ice cream," Owen said, quietly.

"So they won't come with us for pizza?" Matt asked.

"No, I don't think so," Owen said, as they got into their vehicle. Though they did go to the pizza place, it felt so lonely with just him and Matt. As he picked up the pizza, the girl at the counter asked, "Where's your wife and daughter, today?" He just said that they weren't here, this time. The girl thought they looked sad without them.

She was right; they were sad without them, especially Owen.

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><p>It was two days before Christmas, the eve before Christmas Eve. Cristina and Leah had joined them for dinner after a day of shopping at the mall. Leah and Matt, as usual, had disappeared into the playroom. Owen was on the phone with his mother, regarding the Christmas Eve dinner at her house.<p>

"Yeah, mom, I will bring the wine," he said. "Yup, you can count on me." He hung up the phone.

"Mom asked that we bring a couple of bottles of wine tomorrow, when we go across there for Christmas Eve dinner, tomorrow," he told her. "Then we can come home after dinner, you and Leah stay the night and then we can wake up Christmas morning and watch the kids open their presents."

"Oh," Cristina replied.

"What do you mean by 'oh'?" he asked.

"You should have told me that earlier. I have other plans for Christmas," she said.

"What other plans?" he asked, very disappointed.

"I was invited by my former in-laws for Christmas Eve dinner tomorrow. They want to see Leah," she said.

"And Ian will be there?" Owen asked, even though he already knew the answer.

"Yes, it is his parents' house," Cristina replied.

"So what about Christmas day?" Owen asked.

"Well, he gets Christmas day with Leah, so we're going to stay over at his house after the dinner," she answered, knowing full well that Owen was not going to like that. "It is too long a drive back at that hour of the night."

"You're staying over at his house? You're staying with your ex?" he said, in an incredulous tone.

"Yes, in the guest room," she said.

"I can't believe this," he said. "You're going to stay in your ex's house. I understand Leah staying there but you?"

"He gets Christmas with her because I got Thanksgiving. Even so, I still want to see her open her presents on Christmas morning and he said it was okay. I am sure that you want to see Matt open his presents," she said.

"I am your boyfriend. I forbid you to do this. You cannot stay with him," Owen said.

"You forbid me? I can't believe you're saying that," Cristina huffed. "You are not my husband, you do not take care of me. You cannot tell me what I can and cannot do. I am my own woman. I make my own decisions." Her independent streak had kicked in.

She went to the playroom, picked up Leah and angrily walked out of Owen's house.

"Cristina!" he called out to her. "Maybe it was the wrong choice of words. But we are in a relationship. Don't I have a say? Don't I get the chance to express my opinion? Doesn't that mean anything to you?"

All he heard was the slam of a car door and the sound of her driving away.

Matt ran out of his playroom. "What happened, Daddy? Where did Cristina and Leah go?"

"Cristina had something to do," he told Matt, ruffling the boy's blonde hair.

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><p>He went to Christmas Eve dinner at his parents' house, armed with five bottles of wine and Matt. His mother greeted him at the door and asked the inevitable question, "Where's Cristina?"<p>

He said that they were at Leah's grandparents' house. "Cristina's parents?" his mom asked.

"No," he said, quietly. Ellen easily deduced that it was Leah's father's parents he was talking about. She could see that her son was hurting.

"That's okay, son," she said, giving him a hug.

He collected a lot of presents from his family that night, some were for him and Matt; the rest were for Cristina and Leah.

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><p>On Christmas morning, Matt woke up very early to open his presents. It was such a joy to see him ripping all of his presents open and his face lighting up when he saw that he got what he had wanted. Under the tree were a number of unopened presents – all were for Cristina and Leah. He wished they were there. He found a present from Cristina under the tree for him. He opened it – it was a first edition of a book he had always wanted. He had spoken about it once, when they were in a bookstore - and she had hunted it down and found it for him. He wanted to cry because she was not there but he didn't want Matt to see him so emotional.<p>

After they had breakfast at home, Owen and Matt went to his sister's home for lunch and then his brother's place for dinner. They were exhausted by the time they came home. After putting Matt to bed, he knew he wanted to call her. He wanted to say he was sorry that he had used that choice of words. He wanted to say that he missed her and that he loved her.

He dialed her number and it went straight to voice mail. It seemed like the phone was off. He couldn't tell her the things that he wanted. He went to bed with a heavy heart.

Cristina's phone was indeed off because it was dead. When she had left her house, the day before to go to her former in-laws, she had forgotten her phone on the kitchen counter.

The dinner with Leah's grandparents was pleasant enough. There were a lot of family members from Ian's side of the family, who fussed over little Leah. Her father was so proud of her. People asked him, quietly, if he and Cristina were getting back together. He had answered that it was his fervent hope.

She had spent the night at Ian's house and had stayed in the guestroom while Leah slept in her own bedroom. On Christmas morning, they both watched Leah opening her presents and were delighted that she was so happy with all of them.

They had a quiet Christmas day together and it was a good day, as they both cooked and shared their meals together like the family they once were. Ian hoped that it was a sign that things were looking up for him and Cristina. He had made a huge mistake and had hoped that time really healed all wounds and that Cristina would be able to fully forgive him.

On Christmas evening, she drove to her parents' house. She was going to spend two weeks with them, before heading back home in time for the opening of Leah's school. Before she left her ex-husband's house, he told her that he hoped that there was still a chance for them.

On her drive to her parents' house, she thought of Owen but she felt that the holidays would give them a good break from each other, especially since she had lots of things to think over.

Owen continued calling Cristina's phone, only to get the voice mail every time. He was frustrated by the lack of communication between them.

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><p>After New Year's, it was another week before school opened. Owen anxiously awaited the first day of school so that he could see Cristina but when he arrived, he could see Leah already at her desk and Cristina gone. In the evening, it was no better, because Shauna came and collected Leah after school.<p>

Shauna went back to the office with Leah, "Hey, Cristina, I saw your boyfriend at the school, looking very forlorn. He was sorely disappointed that it was me coming to pick up Leah."

"Oh," Cristina said.

"When are you going to put him out of his misery and talk to the man?" Shauna asked.

"I just have some issues that I need to think over," Cristina said. "Soon, I will talk to him, I promise."

"Please, I really can't stand him looking at me that way," Shauna said, as she made her way out of Cristina's office.

Cristina sighed; she really didn't want to torture Owen like this. She packed up her desk, picked up her handbag, took Leah's hand and headed out to an appointment.

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><p><strong>AN: Please leave your reviews. I do appreciate reading them. They provide me with the impetus to go on.**

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	10. Chapter 10 The Birthday Party

**A/N: I find it interesting that some readers thought Cristina was being insensitive by not calling him during the holidays, while others thought that Owen was wrong by using the "forbid" word. Personally, I think that they both made mistakes in communication.**

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><p>Owen did not see Cristina for the entire first week of school. He could never make it in time in the morning to see her drop off Leah and in the evenings, his opportunities to see her were thwarted by the appearance of Shauna. He was beyond frustrated, now, since she was not taking his calls.<p>

On the Monday of the second week of school, it was the same story in the morning. He arrived to see Leah sitting at her desk and no Cristina in sight. In the afternoon, he was hoping against hope that he would see her. He looked around the car park, he was pretty sure that he saw her car. He looked around to catch a glimpse of her but he was distracted by the stream of children, exiting the school.

He saw his son, who had the most distressed look on his face. Matt ran up to Owen and jumped up in his arms, weeping like if his whole world had ended.

"What's wrong, Matt?" he asked, concerned that his son was in such a state.

"I didn't get an invitation," Matt spluttered out.

"Invitation for what?" Owen asked.

"I didn't get an invitation for Leah's birthday party," Matt wailed.

"How do you know this, Matt?" Owen asked. He could not believe that Cristina would not invite Matt to Leah's birthday party. That did not sound like the woman he loved, especially since he knew that Cristina was very fond of Matt.

"Leah's mummy gave the teacher all of the invitations to give out to everyone in class. Everybody got one, 'cept me," Matt cried. He was inconsolable. Owen started rocking him in his arms in an attempt to soothe him. Still, he could not understand how Cristina could hurt his son like that.

They may be having their issues right now but to hurt Matt, who hadn't done anything wrong, was unacceptable. He was angry and sad at the same time.

"Hi," he heard the familiar voice behind him. It was Cristina. He turned around. He didn't how to feel at that moment – he was so happy and so mad simultaneously. Cristina was holding Leah in her arms; Leah had a purple envelope in her hands.

"Cristina," Owen croaked out. Matt, on seeing Cristina and Leah, cried even louder.

"Don't cry, Matt," Leah said, patting him on his back. "Here's your in-be-tation." She handed him the purple envelope.

"I am sorry," Leah said. "I dropped it in the car, this morning."

"Yes, I found it on the floor of the back seat," Cristina said. "I came this afternoon to make sure you got it. So we didn't forget you, Matt. I am sorry if you thought we had."

"See, Matt," Owen said. "Cristina and Leah didn't forget you."

In an instant, Matt started to smile, as he tightly held on to the purple envelope. It was like if he was given the key to the magic kingdom.

She added, "There is a slip of paper in it for an RSVP. You can fill it out and give it to Miss Thompson by Friday so I can see about catering. She's collecting all of the RSVPs for me."

When she said that, Owen realized that she was treating him like any other parent in the class, asking him to return an RSVP. If they were together, he would have had an active part in the planning of the party. Now, he was just a guest, being asked to return an RSVP.

She turned away and headed to her car. Was that all she was going to say to him, after all these weeks of silence, he wondered. This could not be it. He had so much to say to her and there she was, walking away from him.

"Cristina," he called out. She turned around. "You don't need an RSVP from me. Both Matt and I will be attending the party."

"Okay," she said, as she turned away again and walked to her car. His only consolation from that was that she was actually talking to him, a vast improvement from the lack of communication since Christmas.

After that day, he hoped that things would have improved between them and the lines of communication would again be open. However, it would be rare that he would even see her. He still missed seeing her in the morning. Since she lived that much closer to the school, it was easy for her to get to school in the morning much earlier than he could ever manage. She had again resorted to using Shauna to pick up Leah in the afternoons. She was still avoiding him.

He didn't see her again until the day of the party. It was being held at a local roller-skating rink. Matt had been very eager for the party and could not stop talking about it. Lots of other children were already there, skating in the rink. Many of them were accompanied by their parents. He spotted Leah with her dad in the rink. He was holding her hands and they were spinning in circles. He obviously knew that Ian would be there because after all, he was her dad.

"Lace up my skates, Daddy," Matt said, excitedly. "I want to go in the rink."

He laced up Matt's skates and then did up his own. He looked around for Cristina and saw her at the food table. She looked flustered.

As he and Matt went around the rink a few times, he continued to steal glances at Cristina, who seemed to be putting together goodie bags for the children to take home after the party. He wanted to go talk to her.

"Matt, I am going to talk to Cristina. She looks like she needs help. So you're going to skate right there, so I can see you," he said. They both skated to the edge, with Owen stepping out of the rink. He took off his skates and headed off to chat with Cristina.

"Do you need some help there?" he asked. She looked up at him, her eyes were screaming yes.

"Please, I wouldn't turn down any help. Shauna was supposed to help me but she had a family emergency. Could you help with the distributing the snacks and helping out with the games, that would be awesome. Sometimes, I wish that I didn't promise her that she could have this 5th birthday party. Some extra children, that I didn't really cater for, also showed up, so I have to scrounge around to make up some goodie bags for them," she said.

"Just tell me what to do," he said. "I am all yours." He meant that in more ways than one, he wanted her to know.

"Thanks," she said, gratefully, handing him a tray. They worked, along with Ian, as a team that afternoon. Working together allowed Owen to realize that Ian was actually a great guy. They worked well in keeping the kids entertained with all of the games, while Cristina and some of the other mothers handled the food.

During a break from the games while the hired clown/magician was performing, Ian turned to Owen, "So you were with Cristina?"

Owen was a little surprised at Ian's question but he decided to answer, honestly. "Yes, we were together for a couple of months until Christmas, when we had a fight and we haven't really been speaking, since. I am trying to get back into her good graces but it hasn't been easy."

"Yes, she is hard that way. She makes you work for it," Ian said. "I kinda figured that you were with her, when I saw you at the Christmas pageant. I really didn't want to believe it because deep down, I always thought that there was a chance for her and me to get back together."

"Oh," Owen said, wondering whether Cristina had decided to go back to her husband and if that was the reason why she was avoiding him. He just had this sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach.

"Don't look so worried," Ian said. "She told me today that us getting back together was not in the cards for us. She said it was too difficult for her to get past what had happened. She said I was a great father and Leah was fortunate to have me as a dad. But she said that was as far as it goes. Leah will always be in my life but Cristina said she would only be there as Leah's mother and that we both had to move on."

Owen was a mix of emotions. Did that mean that Cristina was going to come back into his life? He could only hope.

"So, if you're going to be with her, I am going to wish you good luck. She is an awesome person. I did wrong by her and I will never forgive myself for that. But I will always wish her well and if she is going to choose you, please do right by her," Ian said, offering his hand for Owen to shake.

"I will if she just lets me," Owen said, shaking Ian's hand. Cristina observed the two men shaking hands. What the hell was going on there, she wondered.

As the party-goers started leaving and the number of people dwindled, Owen decided it was probably time to go home. Matt's energy was running on low and probably needed to take a nap. He had been running and roller-skating all evening.

He picked up his tired son and was going to tell Cristina that he was about to leave.

"Well, thank you for coming. I hope you and Matt had a good time. Thanks for all of the help with the games and the food," she said. She handed him a goodie bag for Matt. Their hands touched.

He looked at her. "Please, Cristina, can we talk?" he asked. "These last six weeks have been absolute torture for me."

She looked up at him. "Yes, I need to talk to you, too. But I have to stick around until everybody leaves and we clean up here. I will come by your house after I am done. Is that okay with you?"

"Yes, yes, thank you," he said. "I will see you later."

"Sure," she said, as she turned away to go back to her hosting duties.

Waiting for Cristina seemed like an eternity, even though in reality, it was only two hours when he heard the doorbell. He had already put an exhausted Matt to bed. He opened to the door to see Cristina, holding a sleeping Leah in her arms.

"Come in," he said. She entered and put Leah down on the living room couch.

"You can put her in the lower bunk in Matt's bedroom, where she normally sleeps," Owen said.

"It's okay, we won't be staying that long," Cristina said. Her words disappointed him. He had hoped that if they made up tonight, she and Leah would stay the night over at his house.

"So we need to talk," she continued. "Do you want to go first or shall I?"

"I will go first," he said. "I need to get this out. I just want to say I am so sorry for my choice of words when we had that fight over Christmas. I was disappointed and to be honest, very jealous that you were going to stay over at your ex's house. I mean, you two have a long history together and a child. I didn't know where I stood at that point," he said. "And I guess my jealousy showed and I should have trusted you."

"Yes, you should have because nothing happened at Ian's house, except we had a quiet Christmas with Leah," she said. "I guess you were wondering why I didn't call you over the holidays."

He nodded.

"Well, initially, it was because I had forgotten my phone at home on the kitchen counter. But afterwards, I realized I needed some time to think. It may have been cruel, it may have been insensitive but I needed the time to think about you, me, Leah, Matt and our future together or not together. There is something I have to tell you," she said.

"What?" he asked, anxiously.

She let out a big breath before she started talking. "Okay, here goes. I am ten weeks pregnant. I have decided to keep it. This was my decision. If you don't want to be part of this, this is your chance to say so. I will not hold it against you. I am going to give you an out, right here, right now."

His mouth dropped open.

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><p><strong>AN Please leave your reviews. Thank you for your comments.**


	11. Chapter 11 We're going to be a family

Owen could not believe what she was saying. He was going to be a father, again. The joy was tremendous. But wait a minute, he thought, did she just say that she was going to give him an out on this baby?

"This is the best news I have ever heard since I was told about Matt. But I don't understand you. Why are you asking me if wanted an out? I don't want an out. I would never ask for an out," he said. "Is that what you think I would want to do? Don't you know me better than that?"

"Yes, I do know you. But this was a decision I made by myself to keep this baby. I didn't want to burden you with it because you had no part in the decision," Cristina said. "I would not want to force an unwanted child on you."

"But I want this baby. This is our baby. Yours and mine. We created this life, together. Of course, I would want to be part of it. I want to be there when he takes his first step, says his first word, calls me Daddy," he said, excitedly, with visions of the baby already in his mind.

"He?" she said, lifting one eyebrow.

"Or it could be she. It doesn't matter, he or she. I would love him or her as much as I possibly can," Owen said, as he went to her, took her in her arms and kissed her. He hadn't kissed her in over six weeks and her lips tasted like sweet nectar to him. "You've made me so happy. How long have you known?"

"Since Christmas Day. I got up feeling so nauseous. The last time I felt like that, I was pregnant with Leah. So I sneaked out of Ian's house early in the morning and went to one of those 24-hour pharmacies and picked up a couple of pregnancy kits," she said, resting her head against his chest. She had missed the feel of his arms around her. He reached down and rubbed the baby bump and it gave him such joy to feel it.

"A couple of pregnancy kits? How many did you need?" he laughed.

"Well, I wanted to be sure, so I bought several different brands in case I got a false result but they all came out positive. I had planned to call you that day to wish you and Matt merry Christmas but with the results of the pregnancy test, I really wasn't ready to talk to you. That is why I was silent for the six weeks. I needed to do some thinking about whether I wanted to bring this life in this world, as a single mother," she said. "I decided in the end that I could do it, that I wanted this baby."

"So you thought about terminating it?" he asked, softly.

"Yes," she said. "I am glad that I didn't."

"Me, too," he said, hugging her tightly. "When do you think it happened?"

"I know exactly when it happened. Thanksgiving night. Drunken sex next to the fireplace. The only time we didn't use any protection," she said.

"We have to start preparations. When is the baby due?" he asked.

"Hold your horses. It won't be a while, yet. August 16 is the due date. But first things first, we have to make sure the baby is healthy. I have a doctor's appointment tomorrow. Do you wish to come? We're going to get an ultrasound," she said.

"I will make time for any appointment you have. I am going to come to each and every one," he said.

"Even as a busy VP, you're going to do that?" she grinned.

"Yup, just reschedule all my meetings so I can go to the doctor with you," he said. "I am not going to miss a moment of this."

"Okay, so this went better than I expected," she set, letting out a huge breath of air. She released herself from his arms and went to check on Leah. "We have to tell Matt and Leah. How do you think they will take it?"

"I bet they will be excited to be a big brother and big sister. They have both been only children for so long," Owen said, as he watched her pick up Leah from the couch. Was she leaving, he wondered.

"Are you leaving?" he said in an alarmed tone.

"No, I was going to carry her to Matt's room. Don't you want me to stay the night?" she said.

"Oh, God, yes. Please stay the night," he said, with a huge grin.

"Alright, just need to get this sleepyhead into bed. Does she have clean pjs in her drawer?" Cristina asked.

"Yes, her clothes are all clean. I washed them since you were last here," he said, as he watched her climb the steps.

"What about my pjs?" she said. "Are they clean?"

"Yes, all your clothes are clean. I have been very good, doing both your laundry," he called out to her. "I was just waiting for you to come back and wear them." He heard her laugh, upstairs.

He sat down on his sofa. He had never imagined that his day would have ended like this. He was going to be a dad, again.

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><p>They lay in bed, together, holding hands. "I really missed you," he said. "I looked out for you, every day. I kept looking around the parking lot to see your car. When it wasn't there, it was like a major disappointment for me."<p>

"I had to get up earlier to make sure I could drop off Leah, so I didn't see you there. Then, I had to bribe Shauna to pick her up in the afternoon. I couldn't face you as yet. The only time I had to steel myself to face you was to give you Matt's invitation to Leah's party. When I found the invitation still in the car, I knew he would be devastated, since all of the other kids had invitations and especially since he was closest to Leah in the class," she told him, turning to look at him.

"I was beyond miserable without you and I just couldn't understand why you didn't want to talk to me," he said. "I know now you were trying to make your decision but from my end, it was absolute torture. You should have come to me about it."

"Maybe but we had that huge fight just before Christmas and I wasn't sure where we stood. Then, I wondered whether you would want this baby at all. I wondered whether I would want this baby at all. Especially in this time of my life, divorced and being a single mom," she said.

"I would have supported you from the very beginning. Please know that," he said.

"Yeah, I know. I should have trusted you but trusting someone doesn't come easy for me these days," she said. He knew exactly what she was talking about – her trust issues stemmed from her broken marriage.

"I spoke to Ian today. He wished me good luck," Owen said.

"Yeah, I saw you guys talking. I was wondering what was that about," she said. "You know he asked me to get back together."

"Yes, he told me but he said that you couldn't get past the betrayal and that the two of you wasn't going to happen," he said, stroking her hair. "You wouldn't believe how happy I was to hear that. He told me to do right by you."

"He did? Ian's a good guy basically. He is an amazing dad and he made a mistake. Other women may be able to get over it but I can't," she said.

He reached down and patted her stomach. "I still can't believe it as yet." He went down, lifted her t-shirt and kissed her baby bump. "Hey Baby Hunt, I am your daddy. I already love you as much as I love your mummy." He looked up at her, as he said that. He was affirming his love for her.

She gave him a smile, "I am one hundred per cent sure the baby's mummy loves the baby's daddy, too." He looked up at her with such adoration in his eyes.

He again kissed her baby bump again. "I think I want do more than just kiss this baby bump."

She chuckled, "Well, go ahead, Mr. Hunt, I have missed you."

"Me too," he said, as he slipped off her shirt, taking her nipples into his mouth. He slipped off the rest of her clothes, as well as his own. "At least we don't have to use protection anymore," he said, grinning.

"I guess the point is probably moot, right now," she agreed. "They do say that pregnant women crave sex more often than usual. Can you keep up?"

"Certainly. I will fulfil your every need," he said. "As your tummy grows, we will explore every possible position in the book."

He hungrily claimed her mouth, as their lips crashed against each other. Their tongues danced together, as their kiss deepened. He could feel himself growing by the second. "I have the most massive erection right now," he said as he penetrated her with his fingers, working them until she was dripping wet. She closed her eyes and moaned softly.

"Are you ready, baby?" he said. She answered him with a soft but emphatic whisper. "Yes!" she said.

When he entered her, he groaned as her warm, wet walls enveloped his cock. He stared into her eyes as he drilled himself into her. She was hungry for him and his sex, as she bit into his chest. He knew that was going to leave a mark but that was the furthest thought from his mind. He wanted to show this woman how much he loved her.

When she came, she wrapped her legs tightly around him, pulling him deeper inside of her, while she dug into his shoulders with her nails. She could feel his body shuddering as he came. He rested on top of her for a little while, before rolling off.

"I didn't know how much I missed you," she said, snuggling up to him.

"Yes, I am glad we're back together. My day started without you and now, you're back in my arms, and life just seems better. You, me, the kids, the baby – we're all together now and everything just seems right in my world, once again," he said, kissing her on the forehead. "We're going to be a family."

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><p>They were both still asleep when the patter of small feet was heard on the hardwood floor of the master bedroom. Two tiny humans climbed into the bed and watched their parents sleep. They crawled in between the two adults, each next to their respective parent.<p>

"Mummy," Leah said, shaking her mother awake. "Get up."

"Daddy," Matt said, nudging his father. "Wake up, we want breakfast."

With some effort, the two adults managed to rouse themselves up from sleep.

"Hey, Leah, how did you sleep?" Cristina asked.

"Fine," the little girl said, as she got up from next to her mother and then dropped herself heavily on her mom's stomach. Owen and Cristina both looked at each other. They both knew that it was time to tell them.

"Leah, you won't be able to sit on Mummy's stomach for much longer," Cristina said, as she gently removed her daughter off her stomach.

"Why?" the little girl asked, shaking her curls.

"Because, growing in Mummy's tummy, is a baby," Cristina said.

"A baby?" Leah's hazel eyes grew round like saucers.

"Yes, a baby. It's your little brother or sister. It is also Matt's little brother or sister," Owen said, hoping that they understood.

Matt said, "But me and Leah are not brother and sister."

Owen said, "I know that. The baby's mummy is Leah's mummy and the baby's daddy is me."

"Ohhhh," the two tiny humans said, finally comprehending the magnitude of the moment.

"So we are going to be a family?" Matt asked.

"Yeah, we're going to be a family," Owen told him, as he grabbed Cristina's hand and kissed it. He noticed her smile before turning his attention to the children but if he had looked long enough at her, he would have seen the flicker of a doubt cross her face.

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><p><strong>AN: Please leave your reviews. Thank you for your comments.**


	12. Chapter 12 The Change in Cristina

Owen glanced at his seven-month pregnant girlfriend, as she sat in the front passenger seat of his SUV. They were headed to the doctor for their monthly appointment. She looked serene and beautiful, he thought. But her peaceful façade seemed to be hiding a web of tangled emotions, he thought. Within the last two weeks, Owen felt that something in Cristina had changed.

He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but there was something different about her. It was if some internal key within her had turned and released a new side of Cristina that he couldn't yet grasp. He could have chalked it up to her hormones but there was a fundamental shift within Cristina.

Much to his chagrin, Cristina and Leah still lived in their own apartment and had not moved into his house with him and Matt. He could not really fathom what was the reason that his family was split into living in two separate households. Earlier in the pregnancy, she had been open to the idea of moving in with him and they had discussed it, frequently. But lately, when he had tried to broach the subject with her about moving in but all she said was that she wasn't ready. He wondered when would she be ready or if she would ever be ready. He was getting particularly anxious about the separate living arrangements as the pregnancy progressed.

Owen was right; there was something different about Cristina. If she was asked directly about it, the chances were that she probably would not have been able to explain what had changed. It happened one weekend at Owen's house. She was sitting in his living room, waiting for him, to go shopping for baby furniture for the nursery they planned to set up in his house. She sat in an armchair and started to take a look around the room.

She found herself staring at the picture of Miriam Hunt on the fireplace mantel. She had seen that picture hundreds of time before and though she had been a little jealous of all of the pictures of Miriam in the house that Owen had put up for Matt, it was the first time that it truly bothered her to see it.

There she was, nearly seven months pregnant, sitting in her boyfriend's house – a house that he and his late wife had bought together to raise their family. Everywhere around the house were reminders of Miriam. Not only were there pictures of her, the furniture was her choice and reflected her taste. Everything about the house screamed Miriam.

Cristina suddenly felt like an interloper and that she didn't belong there. She started to feel the walls were closing in on her. She started to become anxious and needed to get out of there. It was a full-blown panic attack. She got up, grabbed her handbag, got into her car and started driving to her apartment.

Fifteen minutes later, she was back in the safety of her own apartment. She had never had a reaction like that before in Owen's house. The realization came to her. It was not her house! There was no way she was ever going to move into that house. It was Miriam and Owen's house – a house they had chosen together. It was not her house and therefore, it would never be her home.

Owen came out of his den, where he had been clearing up some of his office work. He looked around the living room, fully expecting to see Cristina there. He called out her name but there was no answer. He went to his bedroom. He went to Matt's playroom, only Matt alone was in there. Where did she go, he wondered.

He called her. She answered after one ring. She sounded breathless. "Cristina, where are you?" he asked.

"I am home," she said. "I wasn't feeling well and I decided to go home."

"You could have just gone into our bedroom. You didn't have to go back to your apartment," he said.

"I think I wanted to lie down in my own bed," she said. He was taken aback by that statement. He had often considered his bed, their bed.

"Do you want me to come over? I can get Nina to come and stay with Matt. I am not liking the sound that you're not feeling well," he said.

"No, no, I will be fine," she said. "Stay with Matt."

"So we're going to re-schedule the baby furniture buying until later?" he asked.

"Yeah, yeah, sure," she said. "Just let me get some rest."

"Okay, bye, baby," he said. "Bye Owen," she said, before she hung up.

That was the last time she was at his house, Owen remembered. They never did get around to going shopping for baby furniture for the nursery.

* * *

><p>He looked over at her, again. They were now sitting in the waiting room of Cristina's obgyn, Dr. Sharon Waters.

The receptionist called out her name, "Cristina Yang. The doctor will see you now."

Cristina and Owen went into the doctor's office.

"Why, how are you doing, Cristina?" Dr. Waters said.

"Pretty good, I think," she said. Dr. Waters looked over Cristina's chart. "Yes, your weight is where it is supposed to be for that stage. Just two more months and your little one will be here. Lie down on the table, let's take a look at what's been happening inside of you."

Cristina lay on the table, as the doctor rubbed the gel on her stomach and put the wand over it. "There we go," Dr. Waters said. "There is your baby. Looking really good. Perfect size. So we're still not going to reveal the baby's sex? I can tell you now, if you wish."

"No, no, we want to be surprised," Owen said. "We already have a boy and a girl. Matt thinks it is going to be a boy and Leah thinks it is going to be a girl. One of them is going to be sorely disappointed." Owen loved to watch his baby on the monitor. He just couldn't stop staring at it. Cristina touched the screen. "Hey there, baby. How are you doing?" she said. "Look he or she is waving at me."

They all laughed.

* * *

><p>Owen helped Cristina get into her seat, making sure she was securely strapped in before going over to his side of the vehicle. He started the car.<p>

"So should I take you to the house?" he asked, hopeful that she would agree to come over.

"Um, no, just take me to my apartment," she said. He sighed. Cristina had not been to his house in two weeks. Not since the day she left, rather suddenly.

He took her up to her apartment and into her bedroom. It was then he noticed the piece of furniture that had not been there before. It was a baby crib, tucked into the corner of her bedroom. Next to it was a changing table.

"What is this?" he asked, pointing to the crib.

"It's a crib," she said, as she got comfortable in her bed.

"I know it's a crib. I want to know what you're doing with a crib. I thought we were going to shop for baby furniture for the nursery at my house," he said.

"Um, we don't have to buy any baby furniture," she said. "I got Ian to bring up Leah's baby crib and changing table from the house. It was in the basement. He also brought up the rocking chair I used when I nursed her. It's in the living room."

"So, what does it all mean?" he asked.

"I am just preparing for when the baby comes," she said. What couldn't he understand?

"So you're planning to stay here when the baby comes," he said, in a flat tone.

"Yes, this is where I live," she said.

He gave her an incredulous look. "What is it? What has changed in you? We used to talk about you and Leah moving into my house before the baby comes. So what has changed? You get your own baby crib. So you have no intention of moving into the house?"

"For the time being, no," she said.

"Come on, Cristina. Something's wrong. What is it?" he said.

"Nothing," she said, quietly.

"Nothing? I find that very hard to believe. If you're not going to tell me so I can fix it, I guess I better leave," he said.

"Okay," she said, unwilling to fight with him. He left her apartment and drove home. He just could not understand what was going on with his girlfriend.

Over the next few weeks, he tried to make the best of it. She relented and still visited his house but she never stayed for long. She also didn't seem to want to stay over at his house, anymore. When they made love, she would escape soon after, like a thief in the night. When he stayed over at her apartment, he would make sure he would spend the entire night with her, even though he resented the presence of the baby crib in her bedroom. He knew he was trying to make a point.

* * *

><p>Matt's sixth birthday was here. His birthday was July 17, about a month before the baby was due. Even though she was eight months pregnant, she said she would help as best as she could with the party. The party was being held at Owen's house and after a couple of hours of screaming children, Cristina could not endure much more. Thankfully, it was time to cut the cake.<p>

Matt had wanted a Batman cake, so they had got it from a specialty bakery. Cristina lit the six candles and had a seat opposite him. All of the little kids gathered round him as Matt got ready to blow out his candles. After they sang the birthday song for him, Owen said, "Make a wish, Matt." Matt looked directly at Cristina, then closed his eyes tightly to make his wish. He blew out his candles and had a huge smile on his face.

It was a relief to Cristina when all of the children were finally gone. She was wiping the kitchen counters, when Matt came up to her and touched her.

"Hey, Matt," she said. "How did you enjoy the birthday party?"

"Good," he said. "Cristina, can I ask you something?"

"Sure," she said. "What do you want to know?"

"You're Leah's mommy, right?" he started. Cristina nodded and said, "Yes."

"You're the baby's mommy, right?" he said, as he touched her stomach. "Yes," she said.

"The baby is my little brother or sister, right?" he asked. "Yes," Cristina said, wondering where he was going with this.

"So are you going to be my mommy?" he said.

Cristina was unsure what to say to Matt. After all, he was not her son and she wasn't sure what Owen would want her to say to him because she knew it was important that Matt remember his own mother.

"Well, Matt, you already have a mommy," Cristina said, pointing to a picture of Miriam in the kitchen.

"But she's dead," Matt said.

"Yes, but she is still your mommy. I may not be your mommy but I am your friend," Cristina said. "I love you like a friend."

She gave the boy a hug and a kiss and went back to cleaning the counters. Matt was heartbroken. He ran into his room, flung himself into his bed and started crying like he had just lost everything.

Owen was missing Matt's presence; he wondered where he was, as he had not seen him in a little while. He looked in the playroom; only Leah was there, watching the fish. He went to Matt's bedroom and was horrified to hear his son sobbing.

He opened the door and the room was in darkness. He switched on the light to find his son, with his face buried in his pillow and sobbing. He went and sat next to him, stroking his hair.

"Matt, what's the matter, buddy?" Owen asked.

"I won't get my birthday wish," Matt sobbed.

"What did you ask for? I will try and get it for you," Owen said, hoping to soothe his son.

"You can't get it for me. I already asked," Matt said, tears streaming down his face.

"What did you wish for?" Owen said. "Let me at least try."

"I wished for Cristina to be my new mommy," Matt said. "So I asked her."

"What did she say?" Owen asked.

"I asked if she was Leah's mommy and she said yes. I asked if she was the baby's mommy and she said yes. I asked her if she was going to be my mommy. And she said I already had a mommy. But my mommy's dead, Daddy!" Matt bawled.

"But Cristina loves you, Matt," Owen said, hugging his little boy.

"Yes, but she loves me like a friend. She told me that. I don't want her to love me like a friend. I want her to love me like a mommy," Matt wailed. Owen held his son, whose whole body was shaking, as he cried his eyes out. He held him for an hour, while Matt cried. It was only when Matt got tired and fell asleep that he released him and put him down on his pillow.

Owen left his son's bedroom and went in search of Cristina. He really needed to talk to her. He knew she didn't really mean to hurt Matt but there needed to be some definitive change in the dynamics of the whole family relationship. His son was confused about where things stood between all of them. And so was he.

He knew she would be gone. As always.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Please leave your reviews. Feedback spurs me on to continue. Thanks for your comments.**


	13. Chapter 13 It's time

Owen knew he had to do something. There had to be some forward movement in their family dynamics. He was suffering; Matt was suffering.

It was his and Matt's fervent wish that Cristina and Leah move into their house, so they could be a real family. A family that had their meals together, watched television together and went out together. That is what he wanted. He wasn't too sure what Cristina wanted, given how she was acting over the last few weeks but this is what he had envisioned. He wanted his family to be together, especially with the impending arrival of their newest member.

So, if Cristina wasn't going to make the effort, he was going to do it. He was going to re-do two of the bedrooms in his house. One was to be a nursery for the new baby and the other was to be turned into a fantasy bedroom for a five-year-old girl. He hoped that this surprise would be enough to spur Cristina to move into the house.

It was especially hard since there really was nothing legal binding him and Cristina together. He had asked her to marry him right after she had told him about the pregnancy. But she said that she had just got out of one marriage, she wasn't ready to enter that, again. He was going to ask her once again after the baby arrived. He already had the engagement ring - it was a three-carat princess cut diamond with two smaller diamonds, one on each side of the bigger stone. He finally hoped that she would say yes.

He hired a decorator to do over the rooms. The decorator provided the ideas and bought the furniture for both rooms. Leah was not your typical girly-girl five-year-old, so it could not be too princessy a room. She was a girl that liked adventure, so they had to make the room exciting but still fit for a little girl. For the baby's room, he chose the neutral colors of mint green and white. Since they did not the know the baby's gender, it was important that the colors be neutral enough to work for either sex.

When the decorator finished both rooms two weeks later, he was very impressed. Both rooms were beautiful and he hoped that Cristina would think so, too. They only had two weeks left before her due date and he was anxious that she and Leah were moved in by the time, so he could take her to the hospital, when the time came.

He invited her over to the house for to reveal the two bedrooms. He hoped it would go well but with Cristina, it was difficult to predict how she would react. When she arrived, he took her hand and led her upstairs.

"So this surprise you have for me is upstairs?" she asked.

"Yes," he said. "I have been working very hard on this, keeping it a secret," he said, smiling. He led her to the door of the nursery.

"Open it," he said, unable to contain his excitement. She did as she was told and she stepped inside the room. Cristina looked around; the room was absolutely beautiful, she had to admit. But she was not happy because it seemed like an attempt to manipulate her to move into his house.

"Nobody asked you to do this," Cristina said, as she turned and walked out of the room. She started heading down the stairs.

"Oh, come on," he said. "Are you going to tell me that you are seriously going to raise our baby in your little apartment? It's small enough for you and Leah but another baby, too."

"Nobody asked you to do this," she repeated, looking up at him from downstairs.

"I know nobody asked me to do this. It was a surprise," he said. "And apparently, one that did not go down very well. You're going to have the baby in two weeks' time. If you move in here, I will be able to take you to the hospital, when the time comes."

"I can take care of myself," she said, defiantly.

"Cristina!" he called out to her, as he saw her open the door to leave. She looked up at him and gave him her final parting words, "Owen, this is not MY home."

"Well, if you would just move in, then it would be your home. Just give it a shot, Cristina," he yelled but he knew he was just talking to the air because she had already slammed his front door shut.

Matt came out of his room and observed his father talking to himself at the door of the nursery. "Who are you talking to, Daddy?"

"Apparently, nobody, Matt," Owen said, exasperated. This was not the ending he had expected for his surprise. She didn't even get the chance to see what he had done for Leah's room. Why wouldn't she tell him about what was bothering her? He was not a mind reader and she was totally baffling him, he thought.

He threw up in hands in despair. "Matt," he said. "Let's go to the park. I need to think for a bit."

"Yay," the little boy said, as he got his shoes and ran down the stairs. Owen followed his son down the stairs. He was at a total loss as what he could do next.

* * *

><p>Cristina headed back home. Her head was flooded with competing thoughts. How dare he? He was trying to force her to move into that house, which was not HER house. So, her apartment was small for three people. So what? People have lived in smaller places and survived.<p>

When she got home, she went straight to her bedroom. She was glad that Leah was at her father's house so she didn't have to see how mad she was. She stared at the baby crib in the corner of the room. If it was good enough for Leah, then it should be good enough for this Hunt baby. This baby better come soon, she thought, because it was making her feel exhausted.

"Two more weeks," she said, talking to her stomach. "You are going to get out of there in two more weeks." Those were her last thoughts as she promptly fell asleep.

Hours passed and her sleep was interrupted by a sharp pain and a stream of liquid, gushing out of her body. She put on the lamp next to her bed and looked at herself. "Oh, good grief, my water just broke." She looked at the time. It was 11.48 p.m. She had to find a way to get to the hospital. It was a good thing that she and Owen had filled out the preliminary paperwork for the delivery, she thought. She probably wouldn't have time to handle any paperwork, while she was in pain.

She momentarily thought about calling Owen but her stubbornness kicked in. She had already told him that she would be able to handle getting to the hospital by herself, while living at the apartment. There was no way that she was going to prove Owen right, so he could give her the "I told you so" look. She eased herself off the bed and found her phone and dialed the number for the taxi service.

"Yes, can you please come quickly, I need to go to the hospital," Cristina said. "425 Northcross Avenue. Yes, the apartment building. I will be downstairs waiting for you."

She got up and changed her clothes. She picked up the overnight case she had already packed with all of her essential items. She was now doubly glad that Leah was at her father`s house. It would have been added stress to have Leah there and try to make it to the hospital.

She slowly made her way out of the apartment, grateful that the elevator was close to her apartment door. She went down the elevator and upon exiting the elevator, sat in a chair, in the lobby. She was determined to make it to the hospital by herself. After that show of bravado she had given Owen earlier in the day, she had to be able to do it.

Just then, she saw the taxi driver knocking at the door of the building. She was so grateful to see him because these contractions were excruciating. She walked slowly to the door and let herself out. She was is such obvious pain that the taxi driver had to ask, "What's the matter, lady?"

"I am going to have a baby, so you have to get me to St Mary's Hospital really quick because you don't want to have to deliver this baby yourself," Cristina threatened the driver.

"Oh my God. Why did I have to take this particular call?" he moaned to himself, as he took her hand and guided her to his taxi. He gently put her in the back seat of his car and placed her overnight case in the trunk. "Don't worry, miss, I will get you there as fast as I can."

"Thank you. Um, what's your name?" Cristina asked.

"Thaddeus, Miss," the driver said. "You can call me Thad."

"Thank you, Thad. I am Cristina. I may let out a few blood-curdling screams here in your back seat, so don't get too alarmed. I am just in pain, so the faster you get me to the hospital, will be to your benefit because I won't be taking your ear off with my screams. Okay?" Cristina said, holding her sides.

"Yes, miss," Thad said in a worried voice. He really was not up to delivering any babies in his taxi-cab. Supposed he did something wrong and ended up hurting the baby and the mom. That would be too much for his conscience to bear, so he had to make sure he got this woman to the hospital. His racing thoughts were interrupted by Cristina's screams.

He searched through his map of the streets that he had in his mind and plotted out the fastest route to the hospital. He could get her there in 20 minutes. His adrenaline was running and the intermittent sound of Cristina's screams spurred him on to get there, faster.

They got there, faster than they both expected. He jumped out of the car, ran through the emergency entrance and got an orderly with a wheelchair. "See, she's going to have a baby," he told the orderly. Thad helped Cristina put into the wheelchair, took out her overnight case from the trunk and placed it on her lap. She paid him and thanked him for getting her there. "Glad I could help, Miss Cristina. Good luck," he said, as he got into his taxi and drove away.

The orderly took Cristina in, where they rushed her to the OB ward. As she got comfortable in her room, the nurse asked if there was anyone she would like to call. She thought about it and gave her Shauna's number. Dr. Waters was paged and came in to check on her. "Cristina, you have quite a while again. I will give you periodic checks and the nurses will keep me informed of your progress. It's an exciting day."

"Thanks, Dr. Waters," Cristina said, sinking back into her pillows.

Shauna came, dressed to kill in a little black dress and five-inch Manolo Blahnik heels. She seemed to have taken forever to get to the hospital. "Good Lord, Cristina. I was in the middle of a really hot date, when I got the call. I mean, a really hot date. His hand was already going up my skirt," Shauna complained. "You know a girl has got to get a little something something, these days."

Shauna looked around. "Where's your baby daddy?"

"He's not here," Cristina said.

"Why?" Shauna asked, surprised. She had been working with Owen Hunt as the account executive for the potato chips line and she had always found him to be a pleasant, caring man. So, for him not to be here at the birth of his baby, seemed so out of character for him.

"Because I didn't call him," Cristina said. Shauna's mouth dropped open.

"You didn't call him? What is the matter with you? You didn't call the father of your baby and you called me, instead! Where is your mind at, woman?" Shauna shrieked.

"Well, I am mad at him. We had a fight today. He's trying to manipulate me to move into his house. He did up this beautiful nursery and showed it to me today," Cristina said. "I know that sounds so wonderful but you have to understand something."

"At this point, I don't understand a thing. You have a wonderful, handsome man, who clearly loves you. He wants you to move in with him in his huge, beautiful home. He had a nursery done for your baby. Am I not seeing the whole picture here?" Shauna was flabbergasted.

"Because that huge, beautiful home that you speak of, is not MY home, Shauna," Cristina tried to explain.

"What do you mean by not YOUR home? I know it is his home but if you move in, it will become your home, too," Shauna said.

"He bought that home with his wife, Miriam. It was a home they chose together to raise their family. They were going to have more kids and raise them there. It's THEIR house. Everything about the house is about Miriam. It reflects her style, her taste, her furnishings. There are pictures of her everywhere and I don't feel comfortable there. I don't want to tell him to remove her pictures because I know he did it for his son to remember her. It's like I am an intruder – someone who just doesn't belong there," Cristina said. "It upsets me whenever I go across there. I know it sounds stupid but that's how I feel."

"Okay, I understand now," Shauna said. "Have you told him this?"

"No," Cristina said, quietly.

"I think he should know how you feel. He probably is confused by you, right now," Shauna said.

"I guess. But it probably sounds so dumb that I feel that he'll think I am a fool. I am in a bad place right now," Cristina said.

"From what I know of Owen Hunt, you don't have anything to worry about," Shauna said. "So I know you were mad at him, today but you still have to call him. This is his child. And if you deny him this, he will never forgive you. I don't care if you're in a bad place right now. I am going to kick some sense into you. You need to call the father of your child."

Cristina sighed. "Okay, call him. I am going to be here for hours, anyway."

Shauna took out her phone and dialed Owen's number. The ringing of his mobile phone startled Owen, who was fast asleep. He looked at the clock. It was little before 3 a.m. He looked at his phone – it was Shauna from the advertising agency.

He answered, "Shauna, I don't think we have an advertising crisis at 3 o' clock in the morning."

"No, no advertising crisis, Owen. Just wanted to tell you to come down to St Mary's Hospital. Cristina is going to have the baby," Shauna said.

Owen was immediately awake. "She's having the baby. Why didn't she call me? How long has she been there?"

"She's been here since …," Shauna said, looking at Cristina for the answer. Cristina whispered, "12.30."

"12.30," Shauna told Owen.

"That's more than two hours ago and nobody called me?" Owen got up from his bed. "Thank you, Shauna. I will be right there."

His thoughts were jumbled in his head. He had to drop off Matt at his mom's house. He had to get to the hospital. As he hurriedly dressed, he wondered why the heck no one had called him. She was already at the hospital for more than two hours. He went to Matt's room, picked up his sleeping boy and put him in the car. He got to his mom's place and placed his son into her arms.

"Keep me informed," Ellen said. "This is exciting news, Owen."

"Yes, I will. Thanks for taking Matt," he said, as he kissed his mother on her cheek.

As he drove to the hospital, he was still pondering why he wasn't called by any hospital staff when she came in or why Cristina herself did not call him to get her to the hospital. Then, the truth dawned on him. She hadn't wanted to call him. That hurt him more than he could ever imagine.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Please leave your reviews. Thank you for your comments.**


	14. Chapter 14 Time for Explanations

He arrived at the hospital and found out her room number in the OB ward. He headed there, with very mixed emotions. He was happy that it was time for the baby to be born and he was going to meet his child. He was angry that she had not bothered to call him so he could witness the birth of his baby. He was also sad that she would even think about not calling him for something as important as this. He was just baffled by Cristina these days.

Owen knew that there was definitely something wrong and he wished she would share what was bothering her. He searched through his brain, trying to figure it all out but still, he could come up with nothing.

He finally found her room. He briefly knocked and entered. He found Cristina and Shauna having a discussion. They both looked at him, as he entered the room.

"I think I am going to get a coffee," Shauna said, trying to excuse herself from the room. She knew Owen and Cristina needed to talk. They watched her hurriedly leave the room. Owen looked at his watch. It was now 3.30 a.m.

"So how are you feeling?" he asked.

"Alright, I am getting contractions but the drugs are helping. I have a while to go before I can push," she said.

"So when did you start getting contractions?" he asked. He needed to get the whole picture of what had happened tonight.

"I was sleeping earlier and I woke up when my water broke. That was about quarter to 12 and I knew I had to get myself to the hospital. So I called a taxi and he brought me to the hospital. I got here around 12.30 a.m.," she said.

He let out a sharp breath. "So you couldn't call me and tell me that your water broke? I would have come for you and taken you to the hospital."

"I wanted to prove something," she said. "When we had our fight earlier in the day about moving into your house, I wanted to prove that I could get here by myself. Besides, you had Matt to see about and you probably would have had to get someone to look after him, before you could even get to me. The taxi would have been faster."

He bit his lip. "Okay, that seems plausible. But what about afterwards when you got here? What was it? 12.30 you got here? Interesting that the hospital called Shauna for you. The only way they could have got Shauna's number is if you gave it to them. It would have been just as easy for you to give them my number to call me. So, here is the crucial question, why didn't you?"

She stared at the ceiling and let out a sigh. "I was still mad at you for today and I didn't feel like calling you."

That got him really incensed. "I can't believe that you would want to deny me witnessing the birth of our child, no matter how mad you are at me. Are you deliberately trying to hurt me? What was it that I did that was so wrong that you would even think about such a thing? I have been going this over in my mind again and again and I can't seem to figure it out," he said in a loud voice.

His voice softened, "Help me, Cristina. Tell me what you want. I will do anything at this point."

Cristina was quiet. How was she to explain this, without sounding like she was an irrational person?

She started, "What you did today was a wonderful thing. You created a beautiful nursery for our baby. However, for my point of view, it seemed very manipulative."

"Manipulative?" he was shocked.

"Yes, it seemed like you were trying to force me to move into your house by putting this beautiful nursery so I couldn't refuse," she said.

"But you did refuse. I do want you to move into the house. I want my family to be together. Is that so wrong? I am trying here, Cristina. We seemed to have reached a stalemate in our relationship. We're just not going forward.

"You and Leah are still in that little apartment and then, when you got yourself a baby crib there, you clearly stated your intention of staying in that apartment and raising our child there. I have this big beautiful five-bedroom house. Each child could have his or her own bedroom. Our family could be together, there," he said, in a pleading voice.

"What was the last thing I said before I left your house today?" she asked, hoping that he would remember.

"You screamed that it was not your house and then slammed the door and left. I was left staring at a beautiful baby nursery, talking to myself," he said. The image of Owen talking to himself brought a slight smile to Cristina's face. She hoped that he didn't see it.

"Exactly what I said. It isn't MY house," she said.

"Well, if you would just move in, then it would become YOUR house. It will be OUR house together," he said.

"It's not that simple, Owen," she said. "Even if I move in, it will never be MY house. I just don't feel comfortable there, anymore."

"Why?" he said. "Tell me why. Explain to me what has happened. You used to have no problems staying over at the house and then suddenly, you just changed. It was hard to get you to come over and when you finally did, you never slept over, anymore," he said. "I felt like I was being shunned."

"You were not being shunned," she said. "It's the house. I don't feel like I belong there."

"The house? What's wrong with the house?" he asked, flabbergasted.

She knew she had to spell out all of her fears and insecurities to him. "When I say it is not MY house, it is yours and Miriam's house. It's a house you chose and bought together. You were going to raise your family there. If she hadn't died, you would have been raising your family there. Me, Leah, this baby….none of us would have existed in your life if Miriam were alive.

"I don't feel like I belong there. I feel like if I am some sort of intruder. It is Miriam's house. She chose everything in the house – the furnishings, the decorations, the finishing touches – those are all Miriam's. It doesn't help that Miriam's picture is everywhere, watching me. I know you put those up for Matt so he would remember her but it doesn't make me feel very comfortable. You just can't place me in Miriam's house and just expect me to be happy, there. I am not Miriam's replacement. It will never be my home," she said, a tear streaking down her face. It was hard for her to say it but it needed to be said.

"Why didn't you tell me this earlier?" he said. "We wouldn't have gone through the last three months of torture."

"Because it's your house. You love your house. And you should. It is a beautiful house. You and your son are very comfortable, there. It is not my place to tell you what you can and cannot do in your house. If you want to put Miriam's picture up, you have all the rights to do so. It is not my house and I don't have any rights there," she said.

"Yes, I love the house but I love YOU more than any house. You're my home, Cristina. Don't you understand that? I wanted you to move into the house because I wanted us to be together. Wherever you are, is my home to me," he said. "We can be happy anywhere as long as we're together."

"Really?" she said.

"In fact, why don't Matt and I move into your apartment? We'll be together," he said. They both laughed at the thought at the four of them plus baby crammed into Cristina's two-bedroom apartment.

"Tell you what. I am going to call my realtor to start searching for six-bedroom houses that we can both look at," he added.

"Six bedrooms?" she asked. "Why so many?"

"I'm hoping that eventually, we will have more kids," he said. Cristina rolled her eyes at the thought.

"Well, let's just concentrate on getting this one out into the world, today," she said, clutching her stomach. "Unfortunately, it seems to be taking its own sweet time to get here. I think I am going to take a nap."

"Yeah, me too," Owen said. He kissed her on the forehead and then got himself comfortable on an armchair in the room. They both fell asleep within 10 minutes. Shauna came back to find them both asleep. She figured her work here was done and she was going to head home. She would be back, later and hopefully, wearing more comfortable shoes.

The hours passed. Cristina started to feel the contractions coming back. She had been feeling them for a while now. The drugs had helped but the pain was starting again. She whimpered before she let out a blood-curdling scream. Owen woke up with a start.

"Get the doctor," she yelled at him. He was going to run out of the room, when a nurse ran in. "Get the doctor," he yelled at the nurse. The nurse exited, immediately and five minutes later, Dr. Waters was there.

"Ah, Cristina, let me check you," she said. "Yes, we're there. You can start pushing now. Daddy, you can go behind her and support her back, if you wish."

Owen slipped in behind Cristina, as she rested her body against him. "Leah was six pounds, four ounces. I don't know but somehow, this baby feels bigger than Leah," she said. He didn't want to tell her that Matt was a nine-pound baby and Miriam had a terrible time having him. Given that Cristina was a smaller person than Miriam, he felt it was not the appropriate information to tell her at this point.

After 30 minutes of intense screaming and cursing, Cristina finally pushed the baby out of her body. "Thank God it's out," she said.

"Does the dad want to cut the umbilical cord?" Dr. Waters asked. Owen slipped out from behind Cristina and eagerly cut the cord on the baby, who he could see was a dark-haired girl. A big girl, too. Maybe not as big as Matt was, but certainly bigger than the six-pounder Leah was. "Another baby girl, Cristina," he said.

They cleaned her up a bit, weighed her and brought her to Cristina and rested her on her chest. "Hey, Baby Girl Elyse."

"Elyse?" he said. "You never told me that you were going to name her Elyse."

"Yeah, well I decided, today," she said. "You can give her a middle name if you want. I am sure you have been thinking of names."

"Yes, I have. If her first name is Elyse, can her middle name be Katherine?" he asked. Cristina nodded.

"Who is Katherine?" she asked.

"My godmother," he said. "Doesn't that sound great? Elyse Katherine Hunt. Welcome, baby girl. You know she looks a lot like Leah, except it looks like her eyes might be blue," he said.

"She certainly looks bigger than Leah," Cristina said. "How much does she weigh?

The nurse answered, "Eight pounds, six ounces."

"Oh, my God, how did I get that out of my body?" she shrieked.

"I have a confession to make," he said. "Matt was nine pounds, two ounces." Cristina glowered at him.

The nurse came and took up the baby, "We have to get her properly checked out, Ms. Yang."

"Thank you," Cristina said, allowing the nurse to take the baby. "They'll bring her to my room afterwards?"

"Yes, they will," the nurse said.

Owen looked at Cristina. Her hair was dishevelled and she had on no make up but she was glowing, even though she looked tired.

"You did good, Cristina. You're beautiful and our baby is beautiful," he said, as he leaned over and gave her a kiss on the lips.

"No. We did good," she said, as she gave him a look of love, which made him feel warm on the inside.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Please leave your reviews. Thank you for your comments.**


	15. Chapter 15 Coming home

Cristina and Baby Elyse were expected to go home the next day from the hospital, but not before a parade of visitors showed up. Owen brought Matt to see his new sibling, along with the other babies in the nursery.

"It's that one, Matt," Owen said, pointing the baby out.

"It's a girl, Daddy," Matt said, looking at the baby wrapped in a pink blanket.

"Yes, it is a girl. Are you disappointed?" Owen asked his son, as he tousled his blonde hair.

"No, it's just that there are more girls than boys now," Matt said, solemnly. "We have to have a baby boy to even it out."

"I think that it will be a while before Cristina is going to have another baby, Matt, but we can always hope," Owen said

They were soon joined by Ian and Leah, who was skipping along the hospital corridor. "Hey, Owen how are you doing?" Ian asked. "Congratulations." The two men shook hands.

"I am glad that you are here," Ian said. "So you can point out the baby to Leah and me."

Both Owen and Matt pointed out the baby to Leah and her dad. "Ah, she is pretty," Ian said. "In fact, I think she looks like Leah." Leah pressed her nose against the window to get a better look at her sister with the dark curly hair. "I see her, Daddy," she said.

"I told Cristina the same thing," Owen said. "The major difference is that she looks like she might have blue eyes."

"Blue eyes like me?" Matt asked. He started to feel better about the baby being a girl, since the baby had blue eyes like him.

"What's the baby's name?" Ian asked. "Elyse Katherine," Owen answered.

"Well, congratulations, again," Ian said. "Just going to pop in and check on Cristina. Going to ask her if she needs me to keep Leah for a while, while she gets settled with the baby."

"Okay, Ian," Owen said. As he watched Ian and Leah disappear down the hall, it occurred to him that Ian wasn't a bad guy because Cristina did love him once. He was just a guy who made a huge mistake. He decided to give him some alone time with Cristina and Leah.

Half an hour later, Owen and Matt went to Cristina's room to find her alone. "Where is Ian and Leah?"

"Ian had to leave. He is keeping Leah for me, until I catch my bearings with Elyse," she said.

Matt climbed on to Cristina's bed. "I saw the baby, Cristina," Matt said. "She has blue eyes like me."

"Yes, I think she does," Cristina said.

"I think you should have another baby," Matt said. "Because right now, we have three girls in the family and we need to even it out with three boys."

"I will think about it, Matt," Cristina said, stroking the boy's blonde hair. Matt rested his head on Cristina's chest. "I love you, Cristina," he said, softly.

"I love you, Matt," Cristina said, giving the boy a hug. "Like a mommy?" the little boy asked, hopefully. Cristina looked over at Owen for some direction on how she should answer the question. She never wanted to over-step her boundaries when dealing with Matt. He was, after all, not her son and she was not married to Owen. Owen nodded at her, so she answered, "Yeah, like a mommy." The response brought the biggest smile to the little boy's face and he kissed Cristina three times before settling back down to rest his head against her.

"Have you heard from your parents?" Owen asked, his voice cracking a bit, even though he wanted to sound normal. He felt so emotional seeing Matt snuggled against Cristina. He knew his son loved Cristina with all of his heart, so to see him so happy was quite overwhelming.

"Yes, I spoke to them this morning. Since Elyse came early, they hadn't planned to come down this early. They both have a lot of projects to finish up. They will be here in two weeks, as they had originally planned to do," she said. "That's okay. I want to look halfway decent when they get here. Not the way I do now. My mom would have a fit if she saw my hair today."

"It doesn't matter what your hair looks like. You're still beautiful," Owen said, reaching out and tucking some unruly curls off her face.

"Yeah, but you're biased. I am the mother of your child. You have to like me," she said.

"I don't just like you, you know that, don't you?" he said. "Matt told you that he loved you. Well, I do, too. I love you so much." He caressed her face, as he spoke. She took his hand into hers. "Ditto," she said.

"What?" he said, surprised at her response.

"Oh, come on, don't tell me that you haven't seen the movie, 'Ghost'? When Demi Moore's character used to tell Patrick Swayze's character that she loved him, he would always answer 'Ditto'," Cristina said. "It is one of my favorite movies."

"Well, I don't want to hear 'ditto', I want to hear you say the words," he said, sitting on the side of the bed, as he held her hand. Matt watched the two adults with great interest. This seemed to be an important conversation, he thought.

"You want to hear me say the words?" she teased him. "Yes, I do," he said, leaning in for a kiss. "I am going to kiss it out of you." He kissed her once, twice, three times. "You know, I can just allow you to continue kissing me," she said. "The kissing is really nice."

"Stop torturing me, woman," he said, between kisses.

"Okay, okay," she said. "I love you, Owen Hunt. I love you bigger than the Eiffel Tower. I love you bigger than the Empire State Building. I love you bigger than the Washington Monument."

"No, that is not okay, you have to love me bigger than the Taipei 101, bigger than the Petronas Towers, bigger than the Burj Khalifa," he said, smiling.

"That big, huh? Okay, bigger than that. I love you bigger than that," she said, as she grabbed his face and kissed his lips. Matt no longer got disgusted when they kissed. In fact, he rather liked it because it was an expression that Daddy and Cristina loved each other.

"By the way, I have to warn you that my family will be visiting in a little while," he said. "They are very excited to meet the newest Hunt."

"Aargh, hand me my overnight case. I have to brush my hair and put on some lipstick," she said. He handed her the case and she began digging into it.

"Come on, Matt," Owen said, picking up his son. "Cristina needs to get prettied up for Grandma and Grandpa. So we better leave her alone."

As he left, he watched her brushing her lovely ebony curls. He loved this woman so much. He knew he was going to ask her to marry him as soon as he could. He started planning it out in his mind.

* * *

><p>The next day, Owen took Cristina home. Not to his house, as he had wanted but to her apartment. She was glad to be going home. There had been an endless parade of visitors, the day before, at the hospital, including Shauna and Owen's family, who fussed over the baby. Owen's mother was all teary-eyed, even though she already had a lot of other grandchildren from her three children.<p>

"Mom, why are you crying? It's not like you haven't had other grandchildren, before," he said.

"Oh, it's just that I love the babies," Ellen Hunt said. "I think that both Joseph and Grace are done making babies."

"You're sure right about that," Owen's sister, Grace said. Her sister-in-law, Sheila, Joseph's wife, also nodded in agreement. "It's time for my baby bro to be making the babies, especially since he only has two and Grace and I have more," Joseph said, slapping his younger brother on the back. Everyone laughed at that, except Cristina. It made her feel pressured and overwhelmed.

But that was yesterday, today, they were home.

He watched her as she gently placed their baby in the crib in the corner of her bedroom. She then lay on her bed to rest for a bit. He got into the bed, next to her. "Do you need me to stay?" he asked. "Matt is home with Nina, right now."

"No, you don't have to. I am just going to take a nap, while the baby sleeps, so you can go home and see about Matt, if you want," she said.

That was not the answer he wanted to hear. He wanted her to tell him to stay with her and help her with the baby. It really irked him that they were living separately, especially since the baby had arrived, but he understood her reasons for not moving into his house.

"I called the realtor yesterday. She called me back and said she had some great prospects and as soon as you were up to it, we can go see them," he said, hoping to drum up some interest in getting the new house.

"That's great. What you can do is maybe scout out the properties first to see which ones are best for our needs and you can narrow them down to about three or four and we can go see those. I don't have much time to go see a whole bunch of houses with this one around," she said, pointing to the sleeping baby in her crib.

"Okay, that sounds fine," he said. "I am going to start looking with the realtor."

"Yes, you do that, please," she said. "I am going to take a nap, now." She turned away from him to go to sleep. He could chalk it up to her hormones or exhaustion but it felt like she was dismissing him from her presence.

"Okay, then," he said, getting up from the bed. He kissed her on the cheek, as he left but she was already drifting to sleep. He also passed by the baby's crib and lightly touched her body. It was a light touch but it was enough to get the baby to stir awake. The baby was not happy at being awakened and started screaming to let her angry feelings be known.

Owen was going to pick her up when he heard Cristina get up from the bed and come up from behind him. He could tell from her knitted brows that she was not too happy that she was not able to get her nap.

"It's okay, Owen," she said, picking up the baby. "You can go." She headed out to the living room to sit on her rocking chair. She started to gently rock the baby back to sleep. Owen watched the scene with mixed emotions. He felt so much like a visitor and not a participant in taking care of their baby, since they did not share the same house. Living in separate households was a situation that needed to end very soon. He left her apartment, a determined man.

He returned home and looked around his house. Even though he knew Cristina would not live there, he decided to make it a little more comfortable for her, whenever she came over. He started taking down all of the pictures of Miriam in the house. He decided to leave two of them up, both in Matt's room. One was a picture of Miriam herself that he put on Matt's bedside table and the other picture was of Owen, Miriam and Matt when he was a baby on the other bedside table.

Matt watched his father place the pictures in his room. "Daddy, can I get another picture?" he asked.

"You want another picture of your mother?" Owen asked. "Where do you want me to put it?"

"No, " Matt said. "I want a picture of you, me, Cristina, Leah and Elyse. I want to put it there." He pointed to his desk. He looked up earnestly at his father. "A picture of our family."

"Okay, son," Owen said, hugging the boy. "I can get you that. A picture of our family."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Please leave your comments. Thank you for your comments.**


	16. Chapter 16 One step forward

Cristina's parents were driving down for a visit. She was nervous because her mother was a particularly hypercritical person. She made sure the baby was prettily dressed in a yellow outfit and that she was clean and smelled great. The last thing she did was brush out the baby's dark curls before laying her back into her crib.

"Why are you so nervous?" Owen asked. He didn't want to admit it but he was nervous, too. This was the first time he was meeting Cristina's parents. It was strange enough that he and Cristina already had a baby before he even met her parents. Cristina sat on the sofa, her nervous energy was evident as Owen could see her leg shaking

When the doorbell rang, she took a deep breath before she answered the door.

"Ah, Cristina," Helen Yang said. "You look well after having the baby just two weeks ago."

"Thank you, Mother," Cristina said, as she gave her mother a kiss on the cheek.

"Come give me a hug, child," Charlie Yang told his daughter, before enveloping her in a massive embrace.

"Hey, Dad, good to see you," Cristina said. Helen observed the tall, blonde gentleman, standing.

"So this must be the baby's father?" she asked, knowing full well that he was. Owen came forward to shake Cristina's parents' hands.

"Yes, yes I am," he answered. "I am Owen Hunt. I am Elyse's father."

"Pleased to meet you," Helen said, stiffly. "So you're the man who's keeping my baby happy," Charlie said.

"Yes, well, I hope I am," Owen said.

"So what do you do, Owen?" Helen asked, giving Owen the total once-over treatment.

"I am vice president of the snack foods division at Showalter," Owen said. He could see that pleased Helen. He had just passed the "can you provide for my daughter and her children" test. He, too, was pleased that he passed that test.

"So where is the star of the moment?" Helen asked. Cristina went into her bedroom and brought the baby out.

The baby's grandfather cooed as Cristina placed the baby in his arms. "She is a beauty, Cristina. Looks just like Leah, except her eyes are blue."

Helen looked around. "Speaking of Leah, where is my other granddaughter?"

"She is with her father. Ian volunteered to look after her, while I get settled with the baby," Cristina said.

"That was generous of him," Helen said. "He is a single working man. What does he do with her during the day?"

"She stays with his mom," Cristina answered. "I am going to get myself in order soon, Mother, so she will be back here before the school semester starts."

"I hope so," Helen said, as she took the baby from her husband's arms. "Yes, she is a pretty baby but rather big for a newborn. Don't you think so, Charlie? Leah was never this big when she was this age. Neither was Cristina. How much does she weigh?"

"She was eight pounds, six ounces when she was born," Cristina said. "She may be a little bit bigger now."

"Good grief, Cristina. How did you get her out of your body?" Helen asked. Owen sighed silently. He now knew why Cristina was so nervous about her parents visiting. Not really her parents but her mother, he thought. The mother was very critical.

He was a little worried about Elyse. She was a Hunt-size baby and not a Yang-size baby. Suppose she turned out to be tall like the Hunts and not petite like her mother, half-sister and maternal grandmother. She would be like Khloe Kardashian, who looked like a giant next to her tiny sisters.

"Well, she got out, Mother," Cristina said, a little exasperated. "She's here."

"Hmmm," Helen said. "So what is your next step, Cristina? Are you going to continue your single mother status? Are there no plans for you and your baby's father to get married?

"I know you failed miserably at your last marriage. And you may be a little gun-shy to enter a second marriage but you do realize that you do have two children, now and that you need to provide them with a stable home. And do you seriously expect to raise your two daughters in this small apartment?"

Cristina remained quiet. Owen looked at the two women. It was clear to him that Cristina's parents did not know the real reason why Cristina's marriage failed. It seemed that the only people who knew why the marriage failed were Ian, Cristina, Owen, Shauna and the divorce lawyers. He wondered why she never told her parents the truth. He felt the need to speak up.

"I am prepared to get married, whenever Cristina is ready, Mrs. Yang," Owen said. Cristina looked at him, gratefully. "And I am currently looking for a house, where our entire family can live together. I am a widower and I have a son from my first marriage. So it will be us and the three kids together."

"Well, okay, then." Helen said. "I see you have found yourself a man, who is responsible and willing to commit himself to you. Good for you, Owen. I hope you will take him up on his offer, Cristina. I hope you don't let this one get away, like the last one."

"Owen and I will discuss it when the time comes, Mother," Cristina said. The room fell silent.

"Well, I was wondering whether you all would like to go to lunch. I made reservations," Owen said, hoping to lighten the mood in the apartment.

"That sounds wonderful. Anytime you're ready," Helen said, as she watched Owen strap the baby carrier on his body.

As they filed out of the apartment to go the elevator, Owen reached over and grabbed Cristina's hand, interlinking their fingers, together. He just wanted her to know that he was there for her. She looked up at him and gave him a grateful smile.

* * *

><p>For two days, Cristina listened to her mother, criticize her clothing, her choice of hairstyle, her apartment, her single status and how she was taking care of the baby. She was just praying for the end of the second day, when her parents would leave. She would miss the gentleness of her father but not the critical eye of her mother. As she and Owen watched them get into the car and drive off, she breathed a sigh of relief.<p>

As they headed back to the apartment, Owen put down the baby back in her crib. She had fallen asleep in his arms.

"Why is it that you never told them why you got divorced?" Owen asked. It was a question he wanted to ask for the past two days.

"Well, it was my business," she said. He realized she was a very private person but he would have thought that she would have at least shared why her marriage broke down to her parents.

She continued, "You've seen what my mother is like. She would have probably told me that it was my fault that Ian strayed. And I would never have heard the end of it."

"So what about marriage for a second time?" he asked. She knew what he was asking. He really wanted to know whether she was ready to commit to him, legally.

"I suppose so," she said.

"What? What do you mean by that?" he asked.

"I want to get married again, someday. I actually loved being married to Ian until the last year or so of our marriage. It was good to have a companion, someone I could come home to; someone I could share my life with. I gave my all in that marriage to have it irretrievably broken," she said. "So if you're asking me if I am ready to do it again, the answer is no."

He was disappointed, sorely disappointed in fact. He had the ring in his pocket - the three-carat princess cut diamond with the two smaller diamonds on either side of it. After her response, it felt like it was digging into the side of his thigh.

"Okay," he said, quietly. He went into the bedroom and watched his baby sleep.

* * *

><p>Owen and the realtor had carefully chosen five houses for Cristina to see. Nina was babysitting Matt, Leah and Elyse, so they had the entire day to look at houses. Each house was beautiful in its own way but they all fulfilled Owen's criteria of having six bedrooms, a big backyard, outdoor living space, a large kitchen and be close to the children's school. He watched for Cristina's reactions as she viewed each house. She didn't seem overly enthusiastic about any of them. In fact, she seemed withdrawn and very quiet.<p>

"What's the matter?" he asked. "You're hardly saying anything. Barbara and I worked really hard to narrow down all of the possibilities for you. At least you can have some sort of reaction to them."

"I am sorry, Owen. I am just tired. With Leah coming back in time for the start of school, it is now double the work with the baby and Leah," she said. "I am grateful for your hard work. Trust me, I am. I am just tired."

At the end of the day, when they returned to Owen's house, Cristina immediately went to check on the baby. She was sleeping in the nursery that Owen had created for her. Cristina had to admit that it was a beautiful nursery, as she looked around. She picked up the now four-week-old baby from the crib and headed down the stairs.

"Leah," she said, as she stopped by the playroom. "We're ready to go home."

"Okay, Mommy," the little girl said.

"You're leaving?" Owen asked, as he saw her with the baby and Leah. He had wanted to talk to her about the houses they saw that day.

"Yeah, it has been a long day. Can you thank Nina for looking after the girls?" she said.

"We can't continue like this, Cristina. We need to make a decision about the house. This family cannot live in separate households anymore," he said. "We cannot continue in this state of inertia." She turned around and sighed.

"Okay, Owen. The third one," she said.

"The third one? That was my favorite, too. Why didn't you say something? You had Barbara and me scratching our heads, all day, as if we didn't choose the right houses for you to see." Owen said. He was gleeful that she had made a choice. "I am going to call Barbara right now to make an offer."

"Alright," she said. "I am heading out, now." She wanted to go home and rest; she was just so tired all of the time.

Owen called the realtor, immediately. He had already placed his current house on the market and already, there had been five offers. But he couldn't move if he didn't have a new house. Now, he could get finally get the ball rolling, now that Cristina had made a decision.

* * *

><p>It was a very busy two weeks for Owen, as he sold his house and bought another house. He had seen little of Cristina during that period with his job and all of the financial, inspection and legal issues he had to deal with the sale of his house and the purchase of his new house. He wanted to close as quickly as possible, as he was that eager to get his family into a new home. By the end of the two weeks, it was done. They were now owners of a new house.<p>

He rushed across to Cristina's place to give her the good news. That they could move into the house as soon as possible. He got Nina to babysit Matt, as he drove over to Cristina's apartment. As he approached the door, he could hear the baby crying. She sounded distressed. He quickly opened the door. He went straight to Cristina's bedroom. Cristina was not in there and the baby was all alone. He went and picked her up and started rocking her. She calmed down, as soon as he held her close.

"What's wrong, Elyse? Are you hungry? Are you wet?" he said. "Where's your mommy? Why isn't she here?" He was very worried. He went to check on Leah. The little curly-haired girl was fast asleep. It was said that Leah was a sound sleeper. She certainly was, if she could sleep through her baby sister yelling her lungs out. The two girls were there but where the heck was Cristina?

He checked Elyse's diaper. It didn't seem that wet but he changed it anyway. He went to the refrigerator and took out a bottle of breast milk that was stored there. He warmed it up, checked it before he went to the rocking chair to feed her. She happily sucked on the nipple as she laid back against her daddy, looking up at him.

He was extremely worried about Cristina but his first priority was Elyse. As she drank out the entire bottle, he noted that she had a very healthy appetite. That was good to see. He continued to rock her until she fell back asleep. He placed the baby back into her crib.

He could not believe that Cristina would leave the children alone in the apartment. That was not like her. She was a responsible, loving parent. He finally checked her bathroom. There she was, in her pajamas, fast asleep in the empty bathtub.

"Cristina," he shook her awake. "What are you doing in there?" She looked up at him and he could see the exhaustion in her eyes.

"I needed to get away from her," she said, quietly.

"Who? The baby? When I got here, she was screaming and screaming, Cristina," Owen said.

"I am so tired, Owen. She wants to be held all of the time. I don't get enough time to rest," she said. "I had come in to take a relaxing bath and I just fell asleep."

He helped her out of the bathtub. "Is she okay, now?" Cristina asked.

"Yes, I changed her diaper, fed her and rocked her back to sleep," he said, holding on to Cristina, since she seemed a little unsteady.

"Okay, thank you very much," she said. She went back into the bedroom and lay on her bed. She started to cry.

"Oh, Cristina," he said, getting next to her and holding her close.

"I don't know why but I am so exhausted. It wasn't this bad when I had Leah. I could do it then but why can't I do it now?" she said. "I don't think I am a bad mother but sometimes, I just want to get away from her."

"Cristina, the reason why it wasn't so bad when you had Leah is because Ian was there. He was there to help you. You shared the work in taking care of her. I want to do the same for my baby. Please, let me in. Let me help you. She is my baby, too," he pleaded.

She continued to cry. He could feel her body shudder from the sobs.

"Hey, I have good news," he said. "We got our new house. We can move in next week, if you want. We can be together. I can help you with the baby and Leah. We can be a family under one roof," he said.

"You got the house?" she whispered.

"Yeah. The house for you, me and our three kids. It will be alright. I will be there to help you and I can always get Nina to help you when I can't be there," he said. "We can move in as soon as you want.

She stopped crying. "I can choose whatever furniture and finishing touches I want, right?"

"Yes, you can do anything you want. It's your house," he said. She smiled and looked at him.

"No, Owen, it is our house," she said.

"Yes, baby, it is our house," he said, pulling her closer to him.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Please leave your comments. I do appreciate reading them.**


	17. Chapter 17 Under one roof

They didn't move into the house the next week, as Owen had hoped but a whole month later. It had taken the decorator that long to get the house the way that Cristina wanted. They had decided to recreate Leah's, Matt's and Elyse's bedrooms from Owen's house into the new house, so there weren't any changes there. But everything else changed in the house, from the master bedroom, the bathrooms and all of the major living areas, including the living room, family room, kitchen and dining room. The extra two bedrooms that were not going to be occupied were to be done up as guest rooms, that is, until the time came for more children to be born into the family, Owen hoped. There was a lot of work to be done and the decorator worked wonders to finish everything in a one-month time frame.

Owen tried to get the time shortened to two weeks but he was overruled by both the decorator and Cristina, who wanted her house to be done right. The only room Owen had free rein over was the study. He didn't mind. It was his domain and he was going to get to do it any which way he liked. He saved the desk from his old study because he loved it so much. But he changed the rest of the furniture and the bookcases.

When the entire house was finished, the leftover furniture from both Owen's house and Cristina's apartment were either sold or donated. When the new owners came for his old furniture, Owen knew that in a way, he was saying goodbye to Miriam. She was his old life and as much as he had loved her, his new life was with Cristina and their children. He was overjoyed about that.

The day they moved into the house, only Cristina had seen the finished product. Owen had a fair idea what it looked like because he had seen the decorator's drawings but he had not actually seen the final look.

The children already knew that their rooms were still the same as from the old house but they had not seen the rest of the house. Cristina had everyone cover their eyes as they entered the house.

Unlike the beiges and tans that was the hallmark of Miriam's taste, Cristina was more into colors like sage green, coral and eggshell. The place was a sharp contrast to what Miriam had done. While Miriam's style was understated, Cristina clearly preferred a more colorful, happier look.

"What do you think?" she asked.

"Yay," Matthew said. "Bee-yoo-ti-ful." He looked up with Cristina with adoring eyes. In his mind, Cristina could do nothing wrong.

"I love it, Mommy," Leah said. She jumped up and down to reveal her joy at her new house.

"Owen?" Cristina asked. Since he was the one who had paid for everything, he had to like the place.

"It's beautiful, Cristina," he looked at her. "You're beautiful. This is our house for our family."

"To be honest, Laurie and her crew did most of the hard work. All I did was pick the colors and choose what I liked," she said.

"Well, you provided the inspiration," he said, as he kissed her lightly on the mouth.

"Kids, you can go up to your rooms. It's just like the rooms you had at Owen's place," Cristina reminded them. The two children ran up the stairs excitedly to find which room was theirs.

"Do you want to see the master bedroom?" Cristina asked. He nodded, eagerly. They went up the stairs with as much haste as the children.

"Okay, let's put the baby down in her room," Cristina said, disappearing into the nursery. "I think she wants to take her nap, now."

When she returned, she took Owen's hand and they went to the master bedroom. It was lush and luxurious, pretty much looking like what you would expect in a chic, deluxe hotel.

"Ah," Owen said. "Our oasis from the rest of the world." He turned around and gave her a mischievous twinkle. "You know this is where the magic is going to happen."

"Oh, you're so sure about that," she grinned back at him.

"Yeah, I know for sure," he said, as he pulled her towards the bed. They fell on to the bed, as he kissed her deeply. They were still making out, when the door of the room burst open and two noisy, little children rushed inside.

"This place is awesome, Mommy," Leah screamed.

Owen looked at Cristina, as they both rose up from the bed. "Remind me to lock that bedroom door when we're busy in here," he whispered. She chuckled.

"Not so loud, Leah," Cristina admonished. "You have to use your inside voice in the house."

"Oh, sorry, Mommy," Leah said. "We're going to check out our backyard." The two children ran happily down the stairs, yelling at the top of their voices.

"Did I not tell them to use their inside voices?" Cristina said.

"Yeah, but they are just happy," Owen said. "Like I am happy. My family is under one roof. Who wouldn't be elated about that?"

Just then, they heard the cries of Elyse. The sound of her screaming brother and sister had awakened her.

"Oh, duty calls," Cristina said, as she headed to the bedroom door.

"No, I will go," he said. "I will care of her. You can take a rest. You won't have much of that on Monday, when you go back to work."

"Yeah, I better do that. So Nina will be starting early Monday morning full time, right?" Cristina asked.

"Yup, that's confirmed. Nina will be here from 7 a.m. just before we go to work," Owen said. He headed to the next room, where the baby's nursery was. He walked, swiftly to the crib and picked up the crying baby.

"Hey, baby Elyse, how ya doing?" he said, in soothing tones. "Let's get you back to dreamland. Your loud brother and sister woke you up. Bad Matthew. Bad Leah." He took her over to the rocking chair and gently rocked the baby back to sleep. After placing her back in her crib, he went over to the window and watched the two older children play in the backyard. He was so happy that it made him cry. He wiped away the single tear which ran down his cheek. His heart was full because he knew this was what contentment felt like.

* * *

><p>The next week, Cristina went back to work. While she was glad to be back at work, she felt guilty about leaving the baby behind. She knew Nina was a very good babysitter but it didn't make her feel any less guilty. When she came home in the evenings, she would rush to see the baby in her nursery to make sure she was alright. After a week or two, her anxieties had diminished and the whole family had fallen into a regular routine.<p>

Owen and Cristina would get the kids ready for school and feed them breakfast, while Nina would come early in the morning to take care of Elyse. Owen would drop the children off to school, while Cristina would head off to her office for the day. At the end of the school day, Owen would pick up the kids and drop them off at home to stay with Nina, until he and Cristina would come home in the evenings. Then, Cristina and Owen would prepare dinner and they would sit down at the dining table to have their dinner as a family.

The children would have their bath and then be put to bed. They each took turns in tucking each child in their bed. On one day, Owen would tuck Leah in, while Cristina put Matt to bed. The next day, the situation was reversed with Cristina tucking in Leah and Matt getting his father's attention. That way, both children would get equal attention from the adult members of the family. After the children would go to sleep, Owen would sit with Cristina with his arm around her on their living room sofa to chat about the events of their day, before going to bed.

After two months of living together as a family, something different happened, one fine morning. Cristina was getting the children their morning cereal.

As she placed the bowl in front of Matt, he looked up at her and said, "Thank you, Mommy."

"You're welcome, Matt," she said, as she turned to get her cup of coffee. Wait a minute, she thought. Did Matt just call her Mommy? She decided that she wasn't going to make a big deal out of it because she didn't actually mind that he called her Mommy. She was always wary when it came to Matt and her place in his life. She didn't want to replace his mother but she knew he craved a mother figure in his life. She loved the little boy so she gave him a huge smile. His smile back lit up his entire face.

What Cristina didn't know that Owen was studying her reaction, intently. Her nonchalant attitude seemed to show that she accepted being called Mommy by his son without a fuss. Owen had already known that Matt was going to call Cristina "mommy" because the little boy had already told him that he would. In fact, they had a long discussion the night before about it, when Owen had tucked him in.

As Owen tucked the blankets around the six year old boy, Matt looked at his father with earnest blue eyes. "Daddy," he said. "You know that I love Cristina."

"Yes, I know you love Cristina very much," Owen said.

"I love her so much," the little boy said, throwing his arms out to show his daddy how much he loved her. "Do you think that she would like it if I called her mommy?"

Owen had a sharp intake of breath. He knew that this would eventually come. Matt remembered very little of his mother, except what she looked like from the two pictures he had of her in his room. Matt had grown very attached to Cristina, the living breathing embodiment of what he thought a mother should be.

"I think so. Cristina loves you," Owen said.

"Yes, she told me that she loved me like a mommy in the hospital when Elyse was born. So I want to call her mommy," Matt said.

"Okay, Matt, try it out, tomorrow and let's see if she minds," Owen said. "Now, you have to be prepared in case she doesn't want you calling her mommy. Okay, I don't want you to get too disappointed."

"Okay," Matt said. "Daddy, I still love you, too."

"I know, son," Owen said, stroking the boy's blonde hair and then, giving him a kiss on his forehead. "Have a good night."

So, when Matt had called Cristina "mommy", he was rather pleased at her reaction. No one realized that Leah had also observed what had just happened. She was an astute five-year-old and an idea was forming in her brain. She needed to think about it a little more, she thought.

Later that night, when Owen was tucking Leah in her bed, he asked, "So how was your day, Leah?"

"Fine," she said. "Owen, I was thinking."

"Thinking about what?" he asked. He was often amused by this little girl. She made him smile a lot.

"You know I have a daddy and I love him very much," she said, blinking her hazel eyes.

"Yes, I know that. Your daddy is a very nice man," Owen said.

"Well, I just wanted to let you know that I love you, too," Leah said.

"Why, thank you, Leah. I love you, too," Owen said, giving the girl a kiss on her forehead.

"Well, since I have already a daddy and I was wondering if I can call you papa. There is a Spanish girl in my class and she calls her father 'papa'," Leah said.

"I would be honored if you call me papa, Leah," Owen said, as he ruffled the girl's long dark curls.

"Okay," she said. "Good night, papa."

"Good night, Leah," Owen said, as he left the room and took off the light. He was passing Matt's room, where Cristina was still tucking in Matt. He stopped and listened to their conversation.

"Thank you for reading the storybook, Mommy," Matt said.

"It has been my pleasure," Cristina told the little boy. "Time to go to bed, now."

"Okay, good night, Mommy," Matt said.

"Good night, son," Cristina said, as she left the room.

She found Owen waiting for her in the corridor. "So you tucked your son in, Mommy?" he teased.

"Yes, I did and I am proud of it," she said, giving him a hug.

"Well, I now have a new name, too," he said. "Leah has decreed that she is now going to call me papa."

"I like that," Cristina said. "It has an old world feel about it. Papa Owen and Mommy Cristina."

"Yup, that's us," he said, as he took her hand and led her to their bedroom. "Now Papa Owen wants to show you how much he loves Mommy Cristina."

* * *

><p><strong>AN; Please leave your comments. I do enjoy reading them. Always nice to see what people are thinking.**


	18. Chapter 18 Miriam's parents

When Elyse turned six months old, Owen felt it was time to take the family picture. After all, they were already living in the house for a few months and they were now living as a family, so it seemed an appropriate time to do it, so he hired a professional photographer to take the picture. The girls – Cristina, Leah and Elyse – were all in white dresses while the boys – Owen and Matt – were dressed in black suits. It was a formal picture because Owen had planned to frame a large version of the picture to hang over the fireplace.

Matt had asked for two prints – one was to be framed and placed on his desk in his bedroom but he didn't quite say why he needed the second print. Owen didn't really ask him why he needed the second print. But Matt had his own reasons.

After he placed the framed version on his desk, Matt went to Owen's study, found himself a large envelope, wrote his maternal grandparents' name and address on the envelope, put the second print of the picture into the envelope and sealed it, before handing it over to his dad for him to mail. On the back of the picture, he had written the names of everyone in his family – Daddy, Mommy, Matthew, Leah and Elyse. Owen mailed the envelope, without asking any questions, thinking that it was just a drawing that Matt was sending to Miriam's parents.

Two weeks later, Owen received a call at his office. It was Miriam's mother. He was surprised. Though he was on good terms with his deceased wife's parents, they had never played a major part in his family life, since they had retired and moved to Belize. It was not often that he would hear from them but Matt would always receive pictures, postcards, money, birthday presents and Christmas presents.

"Owen, this is Sharon, your mother-in-law," the crisp voice on the other end of the line said.

"Sharon," Owen said. "I am surprised to hear from you. How are you and Lyle?"

"We're both fine. Belize is treating us well," Sharon said.

"So why do I have this great pleasure of receiving a phone call from you?" Owen asked.

"Well, Lyle and I would like to visit Matthew and we're wondering if you can put us up in your house for a couple of days," Sharon asked.

"Certainly. I am sure that Matthew would love that. He doesn't get to see you that often," Owen said.

"Thank you. Lyle and I will be arriving next Wednesday and will leave by Friday," Sharon said.

"That's fine. Do you need to me to pick you up at the airport? I have moved and you have not been to our new house," Owen said.

"Yes, thank you, it has been a long time that we have been there and Lyle doesn't like using the GPS. Says he can't stand some female electronic voice telling him what to do," Sharon said. "Our flight arrives at 5 p.m. American Airlines."

"That's good. Just in time for dinner," Owen said. "I will see you then."

As he hung up the phone, Owen wondered what brought on this sudden visit from his in-laws. He had to call Cristina to let her know what's happening.

"Cristina, I have a surprise for you, or maybe, it will be a shock," he said.

"Gosh, this sounds ominous," she said. "I have a lot of work on my desk, right now and I can't take any bad news."

"Well, it depends on how you view it. I just got a call from Matt's maternal grandparents – Miriam's mom and dad. They want to come and visit Matt," he said. "I couldn't very well say no, given that they are his grandparents."

"Aarggh!" Cristina groaned. "Do they know about the existence of Leah, Elyse and me?"

"I don't think so. I never told them. We are on good terms but I have never been that close to them to keep in touch on a regular basis," Owen said. "They do send Matt stuff and they call him every year for his birthday."

"You know they are going to compare me to their daughter," Cristina said. "And they'll probably be thinking that I am unfit to be Matt's mom. I just know it."

"You are not unfit to be Matt's mom. He is lucky to have you as a mom," Owen said. "And if you ask Matt, he will tell anyone how much he loves his mommy."

"Regardless, they are still going to compare me and watch my every move about how I raise my kids," she said. "Maybe you should give them a heads-up when you pick them up from the airport about the three females who live in your house."

"Yeah, I will tell them. I don't want it to be a total shock to them," he said.

"Now, I have to make sure the house is spotless," Cristina said. "Goodbye, Owen. I have to start planning out our meals. Can't rely on delivery or take-out for those three days."

When she hung up the phone, she felt so nervous. Her leg started to shake.

"What's up?" Shauna asked, seeing how pale Cristina suddenly looked.

"My boyfriend's in-laws are coming to visit their grandson," Cristina said.

"Oooh," Shauna said. "That's a lot of pressure. You have my sympathy."

"My parents are bad enough, let alone parents whom I don't even know," she said. "Woe is me."

* * *

><p>Wednesday evening found Owen at the airport. He spotted them, immediately. They both looked tanned and refreshed. Living in Belize was treating them well.<p>

"Sharon, Lyle," he called out to them. They turned and spotted him. He could see a lot of Miriam in her mother's face. He knew what Miriam would have looked like, if she had got the opportunity to grow older. Sharon gave him a kiss on the cheek, while Lyle gave him a hug.

"Good to see you, Owen," Lyle said. "It has been a while."

"We're family. We should keep better in touch," Sharon said, taking a look at her tall, handsome son-in-law.

"Is that all of your luggage?" Owen asked, noting that they were both pulling carry-on luggage.

"Yes, that's it," Sharon said. "We tend to travel light. No excess baggage."

"Oh, okay, so I guess we should just head out to the SUV," Owen said. "This way, folks, to the parking lot."

They quickly found the car and were soon on their way.

"There is something I have to tell you," Owen said. "It's no longer just Matt and me, anymore. I met someone and we live together. Her name is Cristina and she had a daughter, Leah. We also have a daughter of our own, her name is Elyse. You will meet them, they are all beautiful."

"Yes, we know this," Lyle said.

Owen was shocked. "What? How do you know this?"

"Matt sent us a family photo," Sharon said. "It was of your new family."

The light dawned on Owen, as he remembered the large envelope he had posted on Matt's behalf to his grandparents. So it was the photo which had been sent to them and now they had come to check out the woman, who was taking caring of their grandchild. He felt a little bit resentful because it would mean his new family would be under the microscope by Miriam's parents. It was clear to him that they were here to judge Miriam's replacement. Poor Cristina, he thought.

As they pulled up into the driveway, Sharon remarked, "Owen, this is lovely. It is much bigger than your old house."

"Yes, well, it has six bedrooms, so it is bigger," Owen said. "You will be in one of the guest bedrooms."

"Why did you buy such a big house?" Lyle asked.

"Well, eventually, I hope to have more children," Owen answered, truthfully. He really wanted them to realize that he had moved on with his life. "Well, Cristina and the children are waiting for us in the house." He took out the luggage from the trunk of the car and carried them into the house.

"Cristina," he called out. "We are here." Cristina came and greeted them. She was wearing a dusty blue dress and her dark, curly hair was fluffed out and shiny. She looked beautiful. He knew that Cristina had taken special care on her appearance because with three kids, she didn't often look like that.

"Hello," she said, coming forward and taking Sharon's hands into her own. "I am Cristina."

"I am Sharon and this is Lyle. Very nice to meet you, Cristina," Sharon said, taking a good look at the woman, having to admit to herself that she was pretty. Very unlike Miriam but still pretty. She looked at the house with a critical eye. It was very different from the old house, which was awash in beiges and tans. It was brighter and there was a lot more use of color. It seemed to Sharon that everything that reflected Miriam's taste was missing from this house.

"Where is our boy? Matthew," Lyle called out. The little blonde boy came running to see his grandparents. They both hugged and kissed him.

"We've got lots of presents for you, Matt," his grandmother said.

"Thank you, grandma," Matt said. He held on to his grandparents' hands and pulled at them to follow him. "Come, I want you to meet my sisters." Cristina and Owen had no choice but to follow them.

He first took them to the nursery, where he showed off his baby sister Elyse. She was awake and seemed unfazed by the new faces, staring at her.

"Oh, Owen," Sharon said, as she picked up the baby. "She is beautiful. She has your eyes."

"Yes, she does," Owen said. "And Cristina's curly hair."

"You also have to meet Leah," Matt said. "She is in the playroom."

"Can we take her with us?" Sharon said, cooing at the baby.

"Yeah, sure," Cristina said. "If you want. She doesn't seem to be fussing at all."

They all followed Matt to the playroom, where Leah was watching television.

"Leah," Matt screamed. "Meet my grandparents." Leah got up from her seat and came to meet the older people.

"Pleased to meet you," she said, offering her hand in greeting.

"My, you are such a pretty girl," Lyle said. "Look at all of these curls."

"Thank you," Leah said. "I have my mommy's hair and my daddy's eyes."

"How old are you, honey? You are very tiny," Sharon asked.

"I just turned six. I am in the first grade with Matt," Leah said, proudly.

"Well, now that everyone has met with each other," Owen said. "Let me just show you to your room and whenever you are ready, we can have dinner." Sharon handed over the baby to Cristina, who carried her down to the dining room.

Owen led his in-laws to their room, while Cristina made sure everything was in place in the dining room. She had been smart by hiring Georgio, the chef that Owen used to create special meals. She and Georgio had planned meals for the next three days. She had to make a good impression on these people.

Soon enough, Lyle and Sharon had emerged from the guest room and joined the family in the dining room. Cristina hoped the children had their best manners, in case any bad behavior might be seen as a reflection of her child-rearing skills. She so hated having these people judge who and what she was.

The meal was quite pleasant, the children behaved well and Sharon remarked on how great everything tasted. Owen looked over at Cristina and gave her a smile. He knew that her secret to all of this great food was Georgio. She returned with another conspiratorial smile. Sharon looked across at them, as they smiled at each other. It was clear to her that they were greatly in love. What she also noticed that neither of them was wearing a wedding ring. She recalled Owen's words that they "were living together." Living together and already with a child, she thought as she shook her head in disapproval.

After dinner, Sharon and Lyle opened their suitcases and handed over all of the presents they had brought for Matt. His eyes grew big like saucers as he saw each present. He was grateful for all of the gifts, when it occurred to him that none of these presents were for Leah or Elyse. Leah sat quietly and just watched all of the presents. She looked sad but she didn't say anything. Matt watched his sister's reactions. He picked up two of the presents that he thought she would like and gave them to her.

"For you, Leah, these are yours," he said. The little girl gave him the biggest smile as she accepted them. She showed them off to Owen and Cristina. "See, Papa, Mommy. Matt gave me some of his presents."

"Well, you have to tell him thanks," Cristina told Leah. Leah went over and hugged her brother. "Thank you, Matty."

"You're welcome, Leah," he said, as he picked up two small stuffed animals and went over to Cristina. "These are for Elyse, Mommy."

"Thank you, Matt," Cristina said, as she enveloped him in a huge hug. Sharon noted how the little boy's face lit up, whenever he looked at his "mommy." Her heart ached for her daughter. It seemed her grandson had forgotten his real mommy.

"I will put them in her room," Cristina said. "She will love them." In that moment, Owen felt so proud of his boy and his selflessness.

When the time came for the children to be put to bed, Owen took Leah to her room, while Cristina handled Matt.

"Can I come with you to tuck in Matt?" Sharon asked.

"Sure," Cristina said. Sharon watched as Cristina supervised Matt in brushing his teeth and putting on his pajamas. He then got into bed, while Cristina tucked around the covers around him.

"Storybook time, Mommy," he said.

"What do you want?" Cristina said. "The elephant book or the dinosaur book?"

"Elephants, Mommy," he said. Sharon noted that Matt took a special pride in saying "mommy." She watched them as Cristina read the book to her grandson. The boy's face was animated as he watched Cristina read. Then, she and Sharon kissed him goodnight and they left the room.

As the two women bade each other goodnight, Cristina breathed a sigh of relief that the day was over. She fervently hoped that she had passed the first test.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Please leave your comments. Thank you for your reviews.**


	19. Chapter 19 Parental criticism

Cristina woke up and stretched. She sighed – another day with Miriam's parents watching her every move. Thank God, they would be gone by tomorrow, she thought. She looked across at her sleeping companion. He looked so peaceful but she was still going to wake him up. She gave him a poke in the ribs.

"Ow," Owen said, waking up. "What did you do that for?"

"It's already 6.30, we have to get the kids ready for school," she said. He groaned and stretched.

"Alright, let's get this morning started," he said, heading straight to the bathroom. Cristina sunk back on her pillows. It was going to be another long day. She lay there for five minutes before heading out to the children's bedrooms to wake them up. She went first to Matt's room, put on the light, sat on his bed and gently shook him awake.

"Hey, Matty," she said. "Wake up. Time to get up to go to school."

Matt opened his blue eyes. He put out his arms. Cristina knew that meant he wanted a hug. She pulled him up by his arms and enveloped him in a huge hug. They stayed like that for about two minutes, while they rocked together.

"Okay, you got your morning hug," she said. "Time for you to go to the bathroom."

"Okay, mommy," he said. She helped him out of bed and led him to the bathroom, while he brushed his teeth and washed his face. In the meantime, Cristina fixed his bed and then chose his clothes and laid them out on the bed for him.

"Okay, Matt, your clothes are out. Just change into them and go down to the kitchen. Let me go and get your sister ready," Cristina said, as she left his room.

Leah was still fast asleep. Her long, dark curly hair was spread across her pillow like a fan. It was a task to get Leah up in the mornings. She gently shook her daughter. "Wake up, sleepy head. Rise and shine." The little girl groaned loudly and shook her head, while still tightly closing her eyes.

"I know you're awake, Leah," Cristina said. "Open those eyes." Leah reluctantly opened her hazel eyes.

"Five more minutes, mommy," she begged.

"If I give you five more minutes, you are going to go back to sleep. No, you have to get up," Cristina said. She watched as Leah rolled out of the bed, allowed herself to fall on the carpeted floor and then, crawled to her bathroom. This always amused Cristina, even though Leah did this, every morning. As Leah brushed her teeth, Cristina also fixed her bed and laid out fresh clothes on the bed.

"See you in the kitchen, baby," Cristina said. Leah murmured. She still had not yet woken up, properly.

She then went to check on Elyse, who was still asleep. Cristina gently touched the baby's body to check her even breathing. "Okay, Elyse, Nina will be here, soon."

Cristina headed back to the bathroom. Owen was already gone. That meant he was downstairs, fixing breakfast. She had the bathroom to herself. She brushed her teeth, took a quick shower and changed into her work clothes. By the time she opened her door, she could see her two children, going down the stairs, while Nina, the babysitter was coming up the stairs.

"Hey, Nina," Cristina said. "I checked Elyse a little while ago. She was still sleeping but you could check her now."

"Yes, I will," Nina said. Cristina followed her children to the kitchen, where Owen was making pancakes. He offered Cristina a cup of coffee, while the kids both got some steaming cups of cocoa. He placed the pancakes in front of them.

"Where are your in-laws?" Cristina asked.

"They are not early risers," Owen said. "We will be out of here before they get up." What a relief, Cristina thought.

As everyone had their breakfast, Nina came down with the now awake Elyse. She handed her to Cristina. "Hey there, pretty girl," Cristina whispered at the baby. "Are you hungry?" Nina warmed a bottle and brought it over to Cristina, who fed her. The baby hungrily drank her milk. Owen looked at them, lovingly. He loved his family so much.

"Okay, kids, time to head to school," Owen said, trying to rouse their two older children to get up from their seats.

"I still need to get my hair brushed," Leah said, looking up at Owen.

"Did you bring your brush?" he asked.

"Yes," she said, digging into the pocket of her dress and pulling out a small brush. Owen sat down and got busy, brushing out Leah's hair. "It's only going to be a ponytail today, Leah. We don't have time to do braids," he told her. The little girl nodded.

It was then that Sharon and Lyle came down to the kitchen, just in time to see the Hunt family during their normal morning routine.

"Good morning," Sharon said. "I see we are getting ready for school." She gave her grandson a kiss on his head.

"Oh," Owen said. "I thought we would have been out of here before you got up. You could have slept in."

"That's okay," Sharon said.

"Well, you are free to make anything for breakfast. The kitchen is yours," Owen said. Lyle and Sharon took note of the strange young woman, who was busy, washing the dishes. Cristina followed their gaze.

"Where are my manners? This is Nina, our babysitter. Nina, this is Sharon and Lyle Meriwether, Matt's grandparents," Cristina said. "Nina takes care of the kids, while we go to work."

"Pleased to meet you," Nina said. "I would come over but my hands are all wet with soapy dishwater."

"That's okay, Nina," Lyle said. "So you work, Cristina?"

"Yes, I am an account executive at an advertising agency," Cristina said, putting the baby on her shoulder to burp her.

"I am surprised," Sharon said. "You already have a full plate here with the three children."

Cristina felt the need to defend herself. "I like working," she said, a little defiantly. "It gives me a sense of accomplishment."

Owen had just finished putting Leah's curly locks into a ponytail. He knew exactly what his in-laws were implying. Miriam had been a stay-at-home mom before she got cancer and they probably expected that Cristina was the same, especially since the family had expanded to three children.

"I think we should be heading out to work, now," Owen said, hoping to curtail any further conversation. "Okay, kids, let's leave now. Here are your lunch bags." He handed each of the children their lunch bags. "Sharon, Lyle, I rented a car for you. It's in the driveway, so you can go out, if you wish. The keys are on the counter. Kids, say goodbye to everyone." The two children dutifully allowed themselves to be kissed, before they headed out the door.

Nina had finished washing up the dishes and wiped her hands to take Elyse from Cristina. Cristina gave the baby a light kiss. "I will see everyone this evening," she said, more than a little glad to get out of the house. She headed out to the garage.

Cristina was glad for the respite of the working day to get away from the probing eyes of Miriam's parents. At five in the afternoon, she called Nina to find out if Georgio was there, preparing dinner. Indeed, he already was and according to Nina, everything looked absolutely scrumptious.

By 5.30, Cristina was already home and Georgio was just leaving. She thanked him, profusely and he said that no thanks were necessary because she was going to get a bill. They both laughed.

She was glad that Lyle and Sharon were not home when she got there. The children were in their playroom, having been dropped off earlier by Owen. Nina was feeding the baby. Cristina took a quick shower, changed her clothes and set the table. Everything was in place by the time Nina handed over Elyse to Cristina and left for the day.

"Hello, miss sleepyhead," Cristina cooed to the baby, who was already drifting to sleep. She was rocking her, when she heard the front door open. She knew it was Lyle and Sharon. She braced herself for their return.

"Oh, hello, Cristina," Sharon said, sweetly. She gazed at the sleeping baby in Cristina's arms. "She is such a pretty girl."

"Thank you, just going to put her in her crib," Cristina said. "Dinner's ready. Owen will be home in a bit."

"Okay, we will just go wash up and be back down," Lyle said. When Cristina returned from putting the baby down, Owen was already home. She found him in the living room, checking the mail.

"Hey, baby," he said, patting his lap to let her know he wanted her to sit on him. She curled up into his lap. He wrapped his arms around her. "How was your day?"

"It was actually quite good," she said. "I had a great presentation and I think we will probably get the client."

"Great," he said. Lyle and Sharon came down and found them, wrapped up into each other.

"Good evening, Owen," Sharon said. Owen and Cristina released each other. They almost felt like teenagers, who were caught making out in front of their parents.

"Ah," Cristina said. "I will go get the kids." She hurried out of the room to get the children from the playroom.

"Owen," Sharon ventured. "Lyle and I were talking and we were wondering whether we could have a discussion with you and Cristina after dinner, when the kids are not around."

"Certainly, if you wish," Owen said. He knew that this was coming. Sharon was a very opinionated woman and she obviously had some strong views on the way the Hunt household was being run. He didn't like it but they obviously had to say their piece.

Dinner was a pleasant affair. Again, the food was delicious and soon, everything was gone. The children had their bath and were tucked away by their parents. As they went to put the children to bed, Owen mentioned to Cristina, quietly that Sharon and Lyle wanted to speak to them. That made Cristina very nervous. She knew it was the moment of judgment.

They both came down, holding hands and joined Sharon and Lyle in the living room. Owen led Cristina to the couch, where they both sat down, preparing for the worst.

"You wanted to talk to us," Owen asked. "Well, we're here."

"Yes, thank you, Owen," Sharon started. "Let's be honest. The real reason that Lyle and I came here is that we wanted to see how Matthew was coping in his new family environment. We wanted to see your family dynamics, especially with a new step-mom and siblings."

"Well," Owen said. "I kinda figured that was the reason, after you told me that Matt had sent you the family portrait." He folded his arms; he was ready for anything negative that they were going to say. He was fully prepared to defend Cristina and his family, if need be.

Lyle continued, "We can see that Matt has adjusted very well to his new family. He obviously loves you, Cristina. We can see the love in his eyes, whenever he looks at you."

Sharon nodded. "Still, we do have some concerns, especially when it comes to his memories of Miriam. I know he was only three years old when Miriam died and for Matt, that was half his lifetime ago. We are concerned that he has forgotten her. We see that he already calls Cristina mommy. We don't mind that. We just don't want him to forget his real mommy."

Owen put up his hand, "I can assure you that I have made every effort to ensure that Matt remembers who Miriam was. He has pictures of her in his room and he also watches home movies of her, when she was alive. He does know who she was but he doesn't have any real memories of her. He was two when she got sick and three when she died.

"Matt has been pretty much starved of a mother figure and Cristina has more than filled that void for him. It was Matt's decision to call Cristina mommy because he loves her very much.

"He is only six years old and I am sure when he gets older, he will have questions about his mother. I will be prepared to any questions he may have about his mother. I will ensure that he knows who she was. So you don't have any worries, there."

Sharon and Lyle looked at each other. "Our other major concern is that you two are not married. I am wondering about the stability of the family unit, when there isn't that commitment among the adults."

Owen was incensed. "How dare you question the stability of my family? We may not be married, now but that doesn't mean we are not going to get married in the future. You don't need a piece of paper to say that we are committed to each other. We are committed to each other and to our children.

"I don't know if you would want to hear this as Miriam's parents. But I have moved on with my life. I am making the best life I possibly can for my son with someone I love very much. We already have a child together and if Cristina agrees, I want to have more children with her. You already said that Matt is happy and well-adjusted. That's clearly because of the stability of our family unit. He feels safe. He has a daddy and a mommy and two sisters. He has never felt happier in his life." Owen took a deep breath.

"Sharon and Lyle, as Matt's grandparents, you are always welcome here but never again, am I going to allow you to question how committed Cristina and I are to this family. We are together and nothing is ever going to change that," he ended.

There was silence in the room. "Thank you for sharing your feelings, Owen," Sharon said. "We got your message loud and clear. I think we will retire for the night. Have a good night." The two older people quickly left the room.

Cristina looked up at Owen. "That was some speech, Owen."

He glanced down at her. "I meant every word of it." They both smiled. Cristina knew she loved this man so much. She couldn't imagine life without him. She had a sudden thought and knew she had to act on it, before she chickened out.

She got off the couch and dropped on one knee. "Owen Hunt, I love you very much. Would you do me the honor of becoming my husband? Will you marry me?"

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><p><strong>AN: Please leave your comments. Thank you for your reviews.**


	20. Chapter 20 New relationships

He looked at her with such joy in his eyes. His whole face had lit up with love for this woman.

"Are you serious?" he said. He still could not quite believe it.

"Listen, give me an answer before I get up from here and go screaming to my room," she said, giggling.

"Yes, yes, of course, yes," he said, picking her up so he could kiss her. He looked into her eyes as he gave her a kiss. Their kiss deepened, their tongues wound around each other's. As he pulled away and looked with her with shining eyes, "We're getting married, baby. Oh, gosh, I love you so much."

"I am happy that you are so happy. I am sorry but I don't have a ring to give to you," she said. "I know that is traditional but this was a spur of the moment question."

"Wait here," he shouted, as he ran up the stairs to their bedroom. He went straight to his sock drawer and pulled out the small, black velvet box, that was tucked all of the way inside. He opened the box and stared at the ring that he had purchased months before. It was now time. He ran back down the stairs and handed her the ring.

"Open it," he commanded. She did as she was told and gasped at the sight of the gorgeous princess-cut ring.

"This diamond is huge," she said.

"Well, only the best for my baby. The main diamond is three carats and the two small diamonds on either side are one carat each," he said, beaming. He took the ring out of the box and placed it on her ring finger. "Perfect fit."

"Wow," she said. "I've never had a piece of jewelry like this before. How long have you had this?"

"I bought it before Elyse was born and I would have asked you to marry me, right after her birth but you kept saying that you weren't ready. I was terribly disappointed but I think it worked out better in the end. You asked me to marry you. That means you're ready for the next step," he said.

"I guess I am," she said, smiling at the ring and then up at him and then back at the ring.

"I can't wait to tell the kids," he said. "They're going to flip. Maybe we can use Matt as a ring-bearer and Leah as the flower girl."

"Whoa, hold on there, mister," she said. "You're already thinking about the wedding. I am still absorbing the size of this ring."

"We'll tell them at breakfast," Owen said. "Can we go upstairs now and celebrate?"

"What do you have in mind, Mr. Hunt?" she asked, laughing.

"Come and see, the future Mrs. Hunt," he said. He pulled on her hand and they both ran up the stairs to their bedroom and started stripping off their clothes as soon as they got into the bedroom. For the next hour, there was a lot of giggling, moaning, groaning and dirty talk emanating from that bedroom. It was a good thing that their children were asleep.

* * *

><p>The next morning, as she got ready for work, she slipped on the ring on her hand. She had to get used to having such a huge ring on her hand. She had already woken up the children and they had headed downstairs to get breakfast from Owen. By the time she got there, they were already diving into their eggs, sausages and toast.<p>

"Hey, babies," she said. "Daddy treating you right this morning?"

"Yup, mommy," Matt said, his mouth full of food.

"Don't speak with your mouth full, Matty," Cristina said. "You will get stuff everywhere." Matt swallowed before he spoke again.

"You look real pretty, mommy," he said.

"Thank you, Matt. There is a reason why," she said. She beckoned Owen over and they held hands as she spoke.

"Daddy and I have decided to get married," Cristina said. The two children looked at her with strange expressions on their faces.

"What does that mean?" Leah asked, her brows were knitted together. Owen smiled when he saw it because Cristina had the same expression, when she was perplexed.

"We're going to legally become a family," Owen said.

"I thought we were already a family," Matt said, confused. "What does legally mean?"

"Yes, we are a family," Owen said. He knew he was confusing the children. "Right now, while we know we are already a family, we're going to get a piece of paper from the government that says that they recognize us a family."

"Oh," Matt said. "Is that all?"

"Well, we are going to have a wedding," Cristina said. "A big party and you and Leah can be part of the party, too."

"Ooh, a wedding! I know what a wedding is," Leah said. "That's when the lady wears the big, white dress and the man is in the suit and they walk up the middle of the church. I went to two weddings before."

"Yes, that is it, Leah," Cristina said. "You went to Aunty Laura and Uncle Michael's wedding."

"Yup, yup, yup and there is a big party, afterwards with dancing and lots of eating and a very tall cake," Leah said.

"Yay, party," Matt said. He always enjoyed a good party.

"So it's a good thing, right?" Owen said.

"Yes," the two children shouted.

Just then, Sharon and Lyle came into the kitchen. "What's all the excitement about?" Lyle asked, ruffling his grandson's hair.

"Mommy and Daddy are getting married," Matt shouted.

Sharon and Lyle looked at each other, before they offered their congratulations. "That is fabulous news," Sharon said, giving both Owen and Cristina a kiss on the cheek. "We wish you both the very best."

Lyle slapped Owen on the back and gave Cristina a hug. "Good on you, Owen. You popped the question."

"Well, actually, it was Cristina who asked me to get married," Owen said. "But I had the ring for a while, now, waiting for the right time. Little did I know she would be the one doing the proposing."

"Good for you, Cristina," Sharon said. "Let me see the ring." Cristina showed off her dazzling diamond.

"My word, Owen, that is a gorgeous ring," Sharon said. "I always said you had impeccable taste."

"Thank you, Sharon," he said. "I trust you will be able to make it to the wedding."

"Just send us the invitation and we will be there," Lyle said. "This is such great news."

"Thank you, Lyle. It means a lot to me," Owen said.

The whole family sat down breakfast, until it was time to get out of the house for the day. Nina had already arrived to take care of baby Elyse. Owen was taking his in-laws to the airport, as well as dropping off Leah and Matt at their school. He dropped off the children at the school before they headed off to the airport.

As he took their luggage out of his trunk, Owen said, "It's been good seeing you, Lyle and Sharon." He kissed Sharon on her cheek and shook Lyle's hand.

"Owen, before we leave, we wanted to apologize for last night, if we came on too strong. We were only worried about Matt's welfare in his new environment," Sharon said.

"Yes, I know that. I know that you love him. But Cristina and I are doing the best we can for him. And I guess I should thank you in a way," he said.

"What? Why?" Lyle said.

"Well, I guess it was your discussion last night that prompted Cristina to propose to me. Without it, I would not be an engaged man, this morning," he said, with a huge grin on his face.

"I am very happy for the two of you," Sharon said.

"Thanks, so we will see you at the wedding," Owen said.

"We wouldn't miss it," Lyle said. Owen hugged his in-laws as they headed in to the airport to check in. He knew they were good people, who only wanted the best for their grandson. He jumped in his car and headed to work.

* * *

><p>It was late evening when Cristina heard the doorbell ring. She knew it was Ian, who had come to pick up Leah for the weekend. She had already packed Leah's overnight bag and her school bag which had her homework in it.<p>

She opened the door. "Hey, Cristina," he said, walking in. "I am here to pick up my little pumpkin."

Cristina nodded. "Before I get Leah, I wanted to tell you something," she said. "Owen and I are engaged." She showed him the ring.

"Wow," Ian said. "Hunt put out a handsome sum for that rock. Well, congratulations." He gave her a hug and a kiss on the cheek. "Well, I think it is best that I tell you my news, now."

"What news?" Cristina asked, curious and a little apprehensive.

"Well, I have been dating this woman for the past three months and I was waiting for it to be a steady relationship before I introduce her to Leah," Ian said. "I didn't want to introduce her to my baby girl before I was sure that this was going somewhere."

"Oh," Cristina said, suddenly feeling very strangely.

"Yes, her name is Miranda Nicholson. I met her at the grocers. She helped me choose the right pineapple," he said. "I asked her out and we have been going out, ever since. She is a really kind and generous woman, Cristina. I would like to introduce Leah to her, this weekend. Like going to the park or something like that. Don't want to pressure Leah to like her but I hope that she does."

"I guess if she is in your life now, then Leah should be introduced to her," Cristina said, even though she was still feeling strangely about it all.

"I would want to introduce you to her, too, seeing that you are Leah's mom," Ian said.

"Yes, yes, of course," Cristina said.

"Well, it looks like we both have moved on," Ian said, a little wistfully. "You getting engaged and me getting into a new relationship. I never thought it would happen but here we are."

"Yes," Cristina said, quietly.

"You know you will always be my first love," he said. "I still remember the curly-haired girl, running through the quadrangle and knocking me flat on my ass."

Cristina grinned. "Yeah, those were good days. We were so young. Still, as you said, we both have moved on. I hope you're happy."

"Yeah, I am. I never thought I would be again after we split. But I never knew that choosing a pineapple would have led me to Miranda," he said. "I am glad that you are happy, too."

"Thanks," she said. "Will you come to the wedding?"

"Yes," he said. "I will."

"Let me go get that little rascal," Cristina said. She went up to Leah's bedroom and told her that her daddy had come to pick her up. The curly-haired girl ran down the stairs and jumped into her father's arms.

"Hello, Daddy," she screamed. Ian tickled and kissed his little girl.

"Okay, Cristina, I guess we will be on our way," he said, picking up Leah's bags in one hand and carrying Leah in his other arm. As Cristina watched her ex-husband and daughter drive away, she still had this nagging feeling of loss.

She knew that someday, her ex would move on, as she had done with Owen. But she didn't expect that she would feel this way. Yes, Ian was her first love and she knew that he would always own a part of her heart, as her first love and as the father of Leah.

She was still thinking when she was surprised by the two large arms, which wrapped around her.

"Hey, Cristina Yang, the soon to be Mrs. Hunt," he whispered into her ear.

"Hey, Mr. Hunt, soon to be tied to my ball and chain," she chuckled.

"I am willing to be tied to your ball and chain, anytime," he said. "Did Ian come for Leah?"

"Yeah, they're gone. Ian told me that he wanted to introduce Leah to his new girlfriend, Miranda," Cristina said.

"How do you feel about that?" he asked, turning her around to face him.

"I know this is stupid but I felt this feeling of loss, when he told me that he had a girlfriend. I know I have moved on with you. We have a baby together, we're getting married but still," she confessed, sadly.

"Hey, I know you love me. In the same way, Miriam still occupies part of my heart, I know Ian will always have a special place in your heart," he said. "He's the father of your child. I understand that."

"You know, you are a great guy, you're going to make some woman a fantastic husband," she said.

"I know," he said. "That woman is going to be so lucky to have me."

"Yes, she is," she laughed. They hugged each other, tightly.

"I love you, Owen Hunt," she said.

"I love you, Cristina Yang," he said.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Please don't forget to leave your reviews. Thank you for your thoughts.**


	21. Chapter 21 A battle of wills

It was Sunday evening, when the doorbell rang at 6 p.m. Owen knew that it had to be Ian and Leah, back from her weekly visitation with her dad.

He opened the door. "Hello, Leah," Owen said. The tiny girl grumpily stomped her way inside of the house and up the stairs, without saying anything. "What's up with her?" Owen asked her dad.

Ian let out a sigh. "She's mad. She met my new girlfriend, Miranda. No matter what Miranda did this weekend, Leah refused to have anything to do with her. She sulked all weekend and was generally, a little brat." Ian handed over Leah's overnight bag and her school bag to Owen.

"So I guess it wasn't a good introduction," Owen said.

"No, she just treated Miranda like a _persona non grata_ and just ignored her presence. Miranda tried, believe me," Ian said. "How did you do it? How did you get her to like you?"

Owen laughed. "I will be honest. Well, you know that Leah and Matt go to the same school and are in the same class. The first day of school, I saw Cristina and I really wanted to meet her. So I persuaded my son to make friends with the cute, little girl watching the fish-tank. He was a little grumpy at first but he made friends with her and then they introduced us to each other. It worked so well, I must say."

Ian shook his head. "Man, you were sneaky. Unfortunately, Miranda does not have a child to pave the way for her with Leah."

Owen replied, "She will eventually get over it. If Miranda is going to stay in your life, then Leah will have to learn to adjust."

"I hope so," Ian said. "This was a very rough weekend. Okay, I will see you on Friday evening."

"No problem," Owen said. The two men shook hands before Ian left. He could feel sympathetic to Ian about his dilemma between his girlfriend and his daughter.

Cristina came down the stairs. "Did Ian just leave? I wanted to ask him why Leah is in such a bad mood. She just stomped past me, went into her room and slammed the door."

"Yes, well, Ian and Leah had a bad weekend. Leah totally did not accept Ian's girlfriend, Miranda and apparently, ignored her for the entire weekend," Owen said.

"I thought that might happen," Cristina said. "Leah is daddy's little girl. She has never had to share him with anybody. He has always given her his undivided attention and to have this stranger come in the midst of that, she must be angry. I guess I will have to talk to her about it when I tuck her in bed, tonight. Interestingly, it wasn't this hard for you and me with our kids."

"Well, that's because the kids introduced us," Owen said, smiling.

"Oh, come on, let's be honest, you know you manipulated them in introducing us," Cristina smiled back.

"Well, I wanted to meet the beautiful lady with the curly, dark hair and I used my assets, wisely," he said.

"Hmmph," Cristina said.

He pulled her into his arms. "It doesn't matter because in the end, it worked out for the best. We have a lovely family and a beautiful baby. If Matt and Leah hadn't introduced us, Elyse would have never happened."

"Okay, you win," she said. "But I still have to speak to that little girl about her behavior."

Later that night, as Cristina tucked Leah into bed, she decided to broach the topic of Miranda. "So, Leah, how was your weekend with your daddy?"

"Bad, very bad," Leah offered.

"Okay, what happened?" Cristina asked, knowing full well what had transpired.

"I don't know if you are going to like this, mommy. Daddy has a new girlfriend. Her name is Miranda. She is just awful. She is ugly like a witch and mean to me, mommy," Leah said, solemnly. Cristina tried her best to stifle a laugh.

She cleared the mirth from her voice, when she answered her daughter. "I am sure that Miranda is not ugly and was not mean to you, Leah."

Leah's hazel eyes narrowed. She expected her mommy to be on her side. "I still don't like her, mommy. This is my time with my daddy."

"Well, honey, she is daddy's girlfriend and she is not going to go away, so easily. You accepted Papa, why can't you accept Miranda?" Cristina asked.

Leah stayed quiet for a bit, before she answered, "Because he is my daddy and I am not going to share him."

"But you share mommy with Papa, Matt and Elyse," Cristina said.

"Yes, but I see you all of the time. You are always here. I only see Daddy on the weekend," Leah reasoned. "She was there for the whole weekend, pretending to like me."

Cristina understood where Leah was coming from. This was not going to be easily solved, Cristina realized.

"Okay, honey," Cristina said. "I understand." She knew that Ian would have to give Leah some time to adjust. She kissed her girl on her forehead, before taking off the light and leaving the room.

* * *

><p>Next Friday evening, Ian showed up, promptly at 5.30 p.m. to pick up his daughter. Cristina was the one who opened the door for him.<p>

"Hey, Ian," she said.

"Hey, Cristina," he said. "Is she ready to go?"

"I think we have a major problem," Cristina said. "I packed her little suitcase and her school bag, but she is not willing to go."

"What?" Ian asked. "What do you mean she is not going?"

"She told me this morning before we went to school that she was not going to spend the weekend at your house, anymore," Cristina said.

Ian was aghast. "Does this have to do with Miranda?" he asked.

"Apparently so. She says if Miranda is there at daddy's house, she is not going. She said she will stay at home and play with her brother and sister," she said.

"Where is she?" Ian asked, determined to have a chat with his young daughter.

"Upstairs in her bedroom. It is the second one down on your right, as you reach the top of the stairs," Cristina said. She had tried to coax Leah to get ready for her daddy's pick-up time but it was to no avail.

Ian stormed up the stairs. He calmed himself down before he opened the door. He found his tiny daughter, lying in her bed.

"Leah, what is this I hear? You're not coming to my house for the weekend?" he asked. Leah lay back against her pillows.

"I am sick, daddy, you don't want me when I am sick," she replied. She tried to look as sickly as she could.

"Leah, I have taken care of you before when you have been sick. So you being sick will not be a problem," he said, knowing that his daughter was feigning illness.

"I am too sick to take that long drive to your house," she said, putting her small hand against her brow.

"Let me feel your forehead," he said, pressing his lips against her forehead. It felt perfectly normal. She did not feel feverish at all. "You feel normal. No fever."

She coughed twice. "See daddy, a cough," she said.

"Leah, we both know that you are not sick," he said. "And even if you were, I am perfectly capable of taking care of you."

It was no use pretending anymore, the little girl realized. Leah folded her arms, tightly. "I am not going," she announced, defiantly. "If that lady is there, I am not going."

Ian threw up his hands in the air. He was exasperated by a six-year-old, who seemed to have inherited her mother's penchant for stubbornness. It was like dealing with a mini-Cristina.

"Well, I am not leaving, until you are ready to go," Ian declared. He was determined to win this battle of the wills. He could not let a six-year-old beat him. "I am going back downstairs. You get dressed and come downstairs. I am your father and you have to do what I say."

He walked out of the room and headed back downstairs. He found Cristina in the kitchen, having a cup of tea.

"Do you want some tea, Ian?" she asked. He nodded; he might as well, since it was clear he was not going anywhere, soon. Cristina got up and poured out a cup of tea and gave him some scones to go along with his tea.

"So, were you successful in persuading your daughter?" Cristina said, with a smile on your face.

"Don't laugh at me," he said. "I told her that I was her father and she had to mind what I said."

Cristina burst out, laughing. "As if that would ever work with Leah."

He laughed, too. "Well, I had to try something. The child is as stubborn as you. Remember all of the fights we had."

"Yeah," she said. "I wasn't willing to give you the upper hand in anything, even though you were probably right, most of the times."

"Thank you for admitting that," he said. "So how long do you think I should wait here before I go back up?"

"Give her half an hour," Cristina advised, as she sipped her tea.

"Do you know that she pretended to be sick?" Ian said. "She said she couldn't take that long drive in her sick state. My gosh, where does this child get this from?"

Cristina stayed quiet. Ian looked at her. "Uhh. I know exactly where she gets it from," he said, observing his ex-wife.

As they sat together, Cristina remarked, "This is nice, Ian. That we could sit and chat like this. We can have tea and talk about our child."

"Yes," he said. "I was thinking the same thing. We've come a long way from that last year of our marriage. There were times we couldn't stand being in the same room with each other."

"Yeah, I am glad we are past those days," she said.

"Cristina, I know I have said this before. But I am really, really sorry about how much I hurt you. I know I made a huge mistake but my greatest regret is how much I hurt you," he said.

"It's okay, Ian. It took me some time but I have forgiven you," she said.

"We were really good together, once," he said.

"Yeah, we were. But the best thing that came out of our marriage is that stubborn, little girl upstairs," she said.

Ian drained his cup of tea. "I think I am heading back upstairs to talk to that little girl."

"Good luck," Cristina said.

"I will need it," he said. He walked, wearily, up the stairs and opened Leah's bedroom door to find her, still lying on her bed. She had not moved since he had last left.

"So you did not get dressed?" he said.

"No," she said. Her tiny face was determined.

Ten minutes later, Ian and Leah came down the stairs. "Ah, Leah, you're going to go to Daddy's house?" Cristina asked. The little girl nodded, as she held on to her father's hand.

Ian opened the front door. Leah skipped outside and headed to her dad's car parked in the driveway.

"How did you do it?" Cristina asked.

"I lost the battle of wills against a six-year-old. I told her that Miranda will not be around this weekend," Ian said. He watched as Cristina's face took on a look of great amusement.

"Don't think that this is over. I have to figure out something soon. But I only get to spend the weekend with my baby girl and I am not giving that up," he said. "You win some, you lose some." He picked up Leah's bags and headed out to his car.

Owen came home, a little while after. "Did Leah go?" He had known about Leah's declaration that she was not going to her father's house, this weekend.

"Yes," Cristina responded. "He had to promise that Miranda would not be around this weekend."

"Poor Ian," Owen said. "Poor Miranda, too."

"So how did you do it?" Cristina asked. "How did you win my girl over?"

"Don't you know? It was my very large aquarium of tropical fish. Leah kept wanting to come over and see it. That's how I got the both of you to come to my house, that very first time," he said, giving her a kiss.

"So the fish did it for you," she said. "Maybe that is the key. Miranda has to find or do something that would make Leah interested in her."

"I am just glad that her mother developed an interest in me, too," Owen said. "We haven't really talked about it but when do you want to have the wedding? The sooner the better is fine with me."

"Wedding?" she said. She hadn't really thought about it much. After all, she had just got engaged the week before.

"Cristina, a lot of engaged women start planning for their wedding, almost immediately after the engagement ring is on their finger. They start looking at the bridal magazines, exploring appropriate venues, making appointments at the bridal shops, choosing their bridesmaids, looking at flowers, catering, the music, the decorations, that sort of thing," he said. "But first, we have to set a wedding date."

Cristina could not believe all of that had to be done. For her first wedding, it was all planned by her mother and Ian's mother. After all, both she and Ian had just graduated from college and they didn't have a clue about what to do about these things. Now that she was 30, she would have to do it by herself.

He saw her horrified face. "Okay, you look worried. You don't have to do it by yourself. I will be with you, every step of the way. Plus we can hire a wedding planner, if necessary. It's going to be fine. Let's just choose a date."

She opened her mouth then closed it. It couldn't be June because that was too close. It couldn't be July because that would be Matt's seventh birthday and he was going to have a party. It couldn't be August because Elyse would be celebrating her first birthday and she, too, was going to have a party. It couldn't be November or December because of the holidays. That left September and October.

"September 15th," she said, arbitrarily choosing a date. Owen looked at the calendar. That was actually a good date.

He grinned. "September 15th. We have a wedding date." He hugged her close, so he missed her overwhelmed terrified look, as she thought about all that needed to be done.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Please leave your comments and reviews. Feedback spurs me on.**


	22. Chapter 22 Wedding planning

With the date set for the ceremony, Cristina started a wedding notebook. She started looking at bridal magazines for ideas about dresses, flowers, catering and decorations. Then, she cut out what she liked and placed them in her notebook for reference.

Owen was very excited, as were the children, who were embracing the roles they were assigned. As Matt was declared ring bearer and Leah was designated as the flower girl, they both loved practicing their roles in the living room. Matt would hold a pillow and pretend to balance two rings on it, while carefully walking the entire length of the living room. Leah would get her Easter basket and start throwing confetti on the floor, as if they were flowers. Cristina could always tell when they were practicing because the pillows were askew and there were traces of confetti everywhere. She was glad they were looking forward to it. At least somebody was. She was just feeling overwhelmed. There was so much to do.

This was how she and Owen ended up with Judy, the wedding planner. Owen had heard good things about Judy from a fellow executive, who had recently got married. He could see that Cristina needed help with the wedding planning, especially with her full-time job and taking care of three kids.

Judy came by for a visit on a Saturday morning, bringing with her, lots of idea books for the prospective bride and groom to see. She was tall, extremely slim with carefully coiffed brown hair and brown eyes. They sat in the living room as she took out her notebook.

"Lovely house you have here, Cristina," Judy said. Cristina looked at her with tired eyes. Judy was used to this, when a bride has reached the point where she is completely frazzled.

"Thank you, Judy," Cristina said.

"So, the wedding is on September 15th. That doesn't give us much time. It's already June. Why didn't you come to me, sooner?" Judy said.

"Was Judy scolding her?" Cristina wondered. "Well, originally, I thought I could have handled it myself but with the kids, my job and the house, it turned out to be more than I can handle. Now that the kids are out from school, I can now give greater attention to this. Plus Matt has his seventh birthday party next month and Elyse has her first birthday party the month after and then, September will be the wedding," she said.

"So, other than the wedding, you're also planning two birthday parties. Are you trying to kill yourself?" Judy asked.

"Well, it's important that the kids have their parties," Owen said. "Especially Elyse, she is going to be one. Her first birthday party – that is pretty important. You can't ever get that back."

"Hmm," Judy said. "May I suggest to you to get a children's party planner to handle the birthday parties and we work on the real big event – your wedding. Every bride must have her day."

"Well, this is my second wedding," Cristina said. "It doesn't have to be too big."

Owen looked at her. "Um, it may be your second wedding and mine, too. But it is **our **wedding and I want it to be something that we both remember." He wanted it to be beautiful and memorable. He wanted her to have her day.

"Okay, let's get down to the nitty gritty. Is this going to be a church wedding?" Judy asked.

"I was thinking that we could do a garden wedding. After all, we live in Texas and it will still be warm enough to have a wedding in mid-September."

"Okay, that will work. Have you looked at any venues?" Judy asked.

Owen and Cristina shook their heads. Judy gave them a disapproving look. Suitable venues got booked up really quickly and they had to work fast, if the wedding was only three months away.

"What about an estate? You can have the wedding in the gardens and we will put up a luxurious tent where we can have the reception. That way, everything will be in place. You will also be able to get ready right on the property," Judy said. "I will start making enquiries as soon as I leave here."

"We have to work out a theme and our colors. That way, once we do that, everything will flow from that," Judy said.

Cristina gingerly took out her notebook. "I have some ideas about things I like." Judy took the book from her and perused it quickly. "I can gather from this that you like beautiful, simple and elegant. Yes, we can work with that. Nothing over the top." Judy was pleased.

"What about budget? You've chosen some things that may cost a bit. I certainly don't want to go over budget," Judy said.

"You can give her anything she wants," Owen said. That was music to Judy's ears. She had worked with some budget-conscious people before and it was often a task to get things to fit into the budget. Many a bride would start up with some lavish ideas but it would get cut back drastically because of budget issues.

Cristina looked at Owen and then at Judy. "I mean we are not going to go overboard, here." She never saw the need to spend that much on a wedding. He looked at her and gave her a reassuring smile. "It's okay, Cristina, I want you to have the most special day, ever. I can afford it."

"Splendid, splendid," Judy said, clapping her hands together. "How many people are we catering for?"

Owen said, "About 200." Cristina's family was small but his was huge. His own immediate family was large and then there were his extended family members plus work colleagues he would need to invite. Cristina blinked at the number. At her last wedding, there were only 50 people, comprising family and only the closest friends.

"Good, good," Judy said. The dollar signs kept popping in her head. "Now that we have that out of the way. Let me show you some ideas from weddings that I have done before. Let's look at the garden weddings, shall we?"

The three of them spent the rest of the morning, poring over the books and getting ideas. Owen loved looking at Cristina's face and seeing the delight on her face, when she saw something she liked. He adored this woman so much. With Judy's help, Cristina chose her theme and her colors. It was a very productive meeting and a lot of the planning was actually done.

As she left, Judy said, "I think it is important that we set up a dress appointment as soon as possible. How many will actually be in the wedding party?"

"My friend, Shauna will be my maid of honor and our daughter, Leah will be the flower girl," Cristina said. "And for the men, it is just Owen, his brother, Joseph, who is his best man and our son is the ring bearer."

"Good, a smaller party will work to our advantage with all of the alterations that may be done," Judy said. "Will next Saturday work for both of you? I will set up appointments at the bridal and tuxedo stores. Just make sure everyone will be ready for 10 a.m. at the bridal shop. Mr Hunt, I trust that you, your brother and your son will find your way to the tuxedo store."

"Yes, I can assure you of that," Owen said. "Goodbye, Judy." They waved to her as the wedding planner drove off.

"That was an excellent meeting," Owen said, as he closed the door. Hiring Judy was an extremely good idea, as he noted that the anxiety had been lifted from Cristina's face.

* * *

><p>The next Saturday, Cristina, Shauna and Leah found themselves at this exclusive bridal shop. Judy was already there.<p>

"Great, you are here in time. The shop was booked and I had to use one of my contacts to get you this appointment," Judy said. Just then, a tanned blonde showed up. "Good day, ladies. I am Greta, your personal shopper."

"Good morning, Greta," Judy said. "This is Cristina and she is our bride. Shauna here is the maid of honor and this little beauty, Leah will be our flower girl." Leah beamed at the thought of trying all of the pretty dresses. As soon as she had entered the shop, she had been mesmerized by all of the beautiful dresses.

"Okay, do you have any ideas on what kind of looks you prefer?" Greta asked. Cristina dug into her purse and pulled out a couple of clippings that she liked. "Ah, you like the Grecian look."

"Yes, I like to be comfortable," Cristina said. "Nothing so form-fitting that I can't sit down or breathe properly."

"I have several dresses that you can look at," Greta said. She went to the store's stockroom and pulled out six dresses. As Cristina tried on each dress, Leah would clap for her mommy. "You look be-yoo-ti-ful, Mommy," she would say. Since Leah was her mother's greatest cheerleader, Cristina had to rely on Shauna for her honest opinion. Shauna said she looked great in all of the dresses she had tried on, but none had the wow factor that a bride should have. It was only when Cristina tried on the sixth dress that Shauna was wowed.

"This is it, Cristina. Oh my God, you look gorgeous. Your body looks amazing in this," Shauna screamed. "Owen won't be able to resist you."

Cristina looked at herself in the mirror. Shauna was right. She did look amazing. The particular shade of white brought out her dark hair and dark eyes. She looked luminous.

"How do I look, Leah?" she asked her tiny daughter, who looked at her with excited, hazel eyes. "Like an angel, Mommy," Leah answered. Her mommy was so beautiful, she thought.

Now that Cristina's dress was chosen, then Shauna got a gorgeous navy blue dress, while Leah was outfitted in a pretty, baby blue dress. All in all, it had been a good day at the bridal shop.

At the tuxedo store, it was up to Owen to choose a tuxedo. Whatever tux he chose would dictate what Joseph and Matt wore. He zeroed in on a classic tux. Classic always worked best, he thought. He tried it on and looked at himself in the mirror. "You're getting married," he thought.

"Owen, that's a good look," Joseph said. The tailor at the store agreed. With a few tiny alterations to accommodate his broad shoulders, it would be a perfect fit for Owen.

"This one," Owen said. "Just need to get one for my brother and one for my son." Matt eagerly tried on a tux. It was a little too big. The tailor measured for the adjustments. Matt was very pleased. This was the first suit he had ever worn in his entire nearly seven years of life. He thought he looked so grown up.

"Very handsome," Owen said.

"Thank you, daddy. Do you think that Mommy would like it?" the little boy asked.

"I am sure that mommy will love it, Matt," Owen said, ruffling his son's blonde hair. The little boy's face lit up at the thought.

* * *

><p>The next day, Owen and Cristina began looking at venues. Judy had chosen three places for them to view. Each was a beautiful estate with lovely gardens. They held hands as Judy gave them the grand tour of each prospective venue. In his mind's eye, Owen could already envision what each venue would look like, all dressed up for the ceremony. If it was left up to him, he would not have been able to pick. Each was gorgeous in its own way. He was going to leave the choice up to Cristina. After touring the three venues, she turned to Judy and simply said, "The second one." Judy beamed. "Excellent choice, Cristina." Judy could already see where everything would go.<p>

Over the next few weeks, Judy had them try out dish items for the menu, test wedding cakes and audition a few bands. Owen was most interested in the bands. It was during the band auditions that the idea formed in his head. He was going to write a song and sing it for Cristina. He didn't have too bad a voice. In fact, people said he had a great voice. He had been part of a band, while in high school and college and he often did get an enthusiastic response from the audience, except when they were half-drunk. His song, he decided, was about the joy, happiness and love she had brought into his life.

* * *

><p>While the wedding plans progressed, the children had their parties. First up was Matt's Pirates of the Caribbean-themed, seventh birthday party. It was at Matt's party that it happened. Cristina started to see stars and fainted in the middle of 30 screaming children in the backyard. Owen saw her go down and he immediately ran to pick her up. He gently carried her into the house and laid her down on their bed. A terrified Matt and Leah had followed him into the bedroom.<p>

"What's wrong with Mommy?" Matt asked, anxiously. Owen looked at their distressed little faces and he tried to reassure them. "Mommy was probably just feeling the heat of the day."

Cristina murmured. "Baby," Owen asked. "Are you okay?" Her eyes fluttered open.

"What happened?" Cristina asked, as she touched her pounding head.

"You fainted in the backyard," Owen said. She tried to get up. "No, don't get up, Cristina. Take a rest. Let the party planners handle it."

The two children had climbed on to the bed and stared worriedly at their mother's face. She could see that they were scared.

"I am okay, babies," she told them. Leah kissed Cristina's face, while Matt rested his head against her. "It was probably the heat of the day. It is the middle of July." The two children seemed intent on staying by her side but she wanted them to go back to the party. She turned to Owen. "Take them back to the party. It is Matt's birthday. He has to enjoy himself. I will be okay."

He looked at her. He, too, was unwilling to leave her.

"I will be okay," she said.

"Let's go, kids. Mommy needs to rest," Owen said, as he reluctantly led the children out of the bedroom and back to the party.

Cristina sunk back into her pillows. The cool darkness of the room felt soothing to her heated body. She was worried that the fainting could be a symptom that she was ill. With that thought, exhaustion kicked in and she fell asleep.

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><p><strong>AN: Please leave your comments. Thanks for letting me know what you think.**


	23. Chapter 23 Elyse's birthday

It was a hot and sunny August day for Elyse's birthday. Cristina had got up that morning, feeling a little queasy, but she forced herself to get up. She went to the baby`s room and was surprised to see the baby already up. Elyse was standing up and holding on to the top of her crib.

The baby's face lit up when she saw her mother. "Mama," she said, holding out her two arms to be lifted up.

"Elyse, you are up already. Like you know it is your special day, baby girl," Cristina said, picking up her daughter and kissing her on her full head of dark curls.

"Okay, let's go downstairs and get some breakfast," she said. She went down the stairs and headed to the kitchen to make some cereal for her one-year-old. She put Elyse in her high chair and started to feed her. Cristina liked these times, when it was just her and Elyse, with Owen, Leah and Matt still asleep. Just her and the baby, sharing some bonding time.

"So you are one year old, today," Cristina told the baby. The baby gurgled back in response and smiled at her mother. "You are getting to be a big girl."

The living room had already been decorated for Elyse's party. Ten babies and their mommies would be attending. The babies were from the Mommy and Me class that Cristina attended every Saturday morning with Elyse. The party planner had done all of the catering, the decorations, the invitations, the music and the games.

All of Owen's family would be attending his mom, dad, his brother, his sister, their spouses and their children. Even Cristina's parents were driving down for the occasion. Nina would also be attending as a guest.

"Hey," Owen said, as he entered the kitchen. "I reached for you to cuddle and you were gone."

"Yeah, I went to check on Elyse and she was already up and standing up in her crib," Cristina said.

"She's just an early bird on her birthday," Owen said, reaching down and kissing his baby on the cheek. He then gave her mother a light peck on the mouth. "So are we ready for another day with screaming kids. We barely recovered from Matt's birthday party a couple of weeks ago."

"Well, the only big kids are your brother's and sister's kids plus Matt and Leah. The rest of the children are babies like Elyse," Cristina said. "So it will be fewer screaming kids than at Matt's party."

"I can barely imagine 10 babies in the house at the same time," Owen said.

"Eleven; you forgot to count Elyse," she told him.

"Ah, how could I forget the birthday girl," Owen said. "I can see about her, now if you want to get dressed." He continued to chatter in baby talk to Elyse.

"Thank you," Cristina said. She smiled as she watched him. He really was a great father. She was glad that her children had such amazing dads.

* * *

><p>A couple of hours later, everyone was dressed for the party. Leah was wearing a red dress, Matt was wearing a white striped shirt with dark blue jeans and Elyse was in a periwinkle blue dress, that brought out her eyes. Cristina was in a pale lemon yellow sundress while Owen wore just a light blue polo shirt and jeans. He figured he probably would have to do the grunge work, so he might as well as be comfortable. Despite his casual wear, all of the mommies from the Mommy and Me class were rather envious of Cristina that she had such a scrumptious mate.<p>

"Is there anything I can get for you ladies?" he asked, as appointed waiter and head dishwasher for the function. They each gave him what their drink order. He was rather gracious, as he came back with all of their drinks. He was not only handsome but very helpful, they thought.

Cristina was in the kitchen, observing the chaos in her backyard. While the babies and their moms were happily chilling it out in the air-conditioned living room, there was another party of sorts happening in the backyard, with the older children. Matt and Leah, along with Matt's five cousins, were whooping it up in the backyard.

Mrs. Hunt came up and watched her gaze. "So are you and Owen going to add to the brood in the backyard?"

"Well, Elyse has some ways to go before she can join the rest of the children. She is only one," Cristina said, politely. She knew exactly where her future mother in law was going with this.

"Oh, I don't mean Elyse," Ellen said. "I mean other children after Elyse. Maybe another boy."

"Well, maybe, sometime in the future," Cristina said. What was it with the Hunt family and their desire for more grandchildren, she thought. They already had seven grandchildren.

Mrs. Hunt realized she had to change the subject. Cristina seemed to be getting a little touchy with the children question.

"So how are the wedding plans coming along?" Ellen asked.

"They are going well. Judy has been pretty much amazing. She has been doing all of the groundwork and we just approve. We've chosen pretty much everything our clothes, the food, the cake, the venue, the music," Cristina said. "So we just have a month and a half again for the ceremony. But seriously, I don't see what the big fuss is about because Owen and I live practically like we are married, anyway."

"Oh, but every bride looks forward to her big day," Owen's sister Grace came up from behind them. "I am sure you will be a beautiful bride, Cristina."

"I already was a bride," Cristina said. "We could have just gone down to City Hall and got married, this time."

"No, no, no," Ellen said. "You can't deprive the Hunts of a wedding. They are coming from all over the country to go to this wedding. What about your family, honey?"

"My family is really small. You've met my mom and my dad in the living room. My mom is an only child like me. My dad has a brother in San Francisco and he and his wife and their son, his spouse and his daughter are coming to the wedding. That's it for my side of the family. Seven people in all out of the 200 invited."

Ellen could see that Cristina was not really into the wedding, all that much. Cristina had done everything that she was supposed to do but she had done it, mainly for Owen who wanted the wedding with all of its trappings. She did not seem particularly happy, Ellen thought. She wondered if the young woman was getting cold feet. She made a mental note to mention it to her son.

Ellen was right. Cristina really was not feeling too great about anything at the moment. She was feeling the pressure of the impending wedding plus Mrs. Hunt was bringing up having more children. Plus she hadn't been feeling well these past couple of weeks. The first sign had been at Matt's wedding when she fainted. She hadn't yet been able to go to the doctor, with all of the planning for Elyse's birthday, as well as the wedding. She wanted this wedding to be over with it, as soon as possible. She was just tired of it all.

She went back to the living room and watched the babies crawl around their mommies. Owen, holding Elyse, seemed to be holding the fort there. He had the full attention of all the mommies and had them enthralled. He saw her and waved at her. She waved back, before heading to their bedroom to take a rest.

An hour later, the babies were getting really tired and were starting to get cranky. It was definitely time to cut the cake and get these babies out of their house. Owen, with Elyse in his arms, went in search of Cristina. She was asleep in the bedroom. He gently shook her awake.

"Baby, wake up. Time to cut the cake and get the babies out of here," he said. Cristina rubbed her eyes. "Okay," she said. She got up, a little unsteady and made her way to the living room. Owen's sister had already brought out the cake and had stuck in the candle. Cristina got the matches and lit it up. With Elyse in his lap, Owen sat down behind the cake. The baby clapped at seeing the lighted candle. She reached out to touch but Owen pulled back her hand before she was burned.

"No, Elyse. Fire can hurt," he said. The baby looked up at him with her trusting, blue eyes. "Let's just blow out this candle." He started singing the "Happy Birthday" song and after that, he blew out the candle for the baby. With all attention on Owen and Elyse, no one had noticed that Cristina had slipped to the side and was leaning against a wall. Her head was spinning. The wall was the only thing that was keeping her upright.

Holding on to the wall, she made it across to the hallway bathroom and closed the door. She lay on the floor, grateful for the coolness of the tiles. If she had not lain down, she was certain that she was going to pass out.

With the excitement of the distribution of the cake and goodie bags to the babies' moms, it was only afterwards that Owen looked around and realized that his girlfriend was nowhere in sight. "Mom, have you seen Cristina?" he asked his mother.

"No, I thought she would have been out here, helping with giving out the cake, especially since the baby guests are leaving," his mother said, in a disapproving tone. "By the way, Owen, I thought I would mention this to you, but it seems to me that Cristina is not too enthusiastic about the wedding. I hope she is not getting cold feet."

"No, Mom," he said. "Cristina is not getting cold feet." He sounded less than certain when he said it. He handed Elyse to his mom, while he went to look for Cristina.

He checked all of the bedrooms and bathrooms upstairs. Then he came downstairs. His nephew, Jack, said, "Uncle Owen, I wanted to use the bathroom but I think someone is in it and has been in there for a long time."

"Alright, Jack, I will check it for you. You can go upstairs and use Matt's bathroom," he told his nephew. He wondered if it was Cristina who was in the bathroom. He knocked on the door. "Cristina, are you in there?" He heard a weak whimper. "Can you open the door?"

"No," she said. "I just need to lay here."

"You can't lay there. You need to come out. Are you sick?" he asked.

"I think so," she said. "I am feeling queasy and my head is spinning. Give me five minutes; I think I will be able to get up."

"I don't think I can wait five minutes," he said. "I am going to break the door down."

"No, no, don't do that," she said. "I will try." She crawled to the bathroom door and clicked the lock open. Owen rushed inside and picked her up from off the floor and carried her up to their bedroom.

"Baby, we need to go to the doctor. This has happened twice," he said. Cristina agreed. "Definitely, tomorrow," she said.

"I need to ask you something," he said. "My mom mentioned that she thought that you were getting cold feet about the wedding. Are you having second thoughts about marrying me?"

She looked at him. "Admittedly, I have been having second thoughts about the wedding."

"What?" he said. "Don't you love me?"

"Of course I love you," she said. "That's never been the problem."

"Then why don't you want to marry me?" he asked. "We have a good life together; we have three great kids. What's wrong with us legally becoming a family?"

"I didn't say I didn't want to marry you. I said I was having second thoughts about the wedding," she said.

He now understood. "Oh, it is the wedding that is bothering you. What a relief! I thought you didn't want to marry me, anymore. Why don't you want to have the wedding? Everyone is coming."

"I know," she said. "I just don't know why we have to go through with all of this fuss."

"Because it is the last wedding I am ever going to have," he said. "I want it to be special. I want to see you coming down the aisle towards me. You are going to be beautiful. I want to have the memory burned into my brain."

"Oh, you are such a romantic, Owen Hunt and you are the only reason why I am going through with this big wedding because it means so much to you," she said. He bent down and kissed her. "Take a rest. Tomorrow, we are going to the doctor."

* * *

><p>The next day found them in Dr. Storm's office. Dr. Storm had one of those movie star names Jared Storm. Cristina always giggled when she heard it. He had examined her, listened to her breath sounds, took her blood pressure and had taken urine and blood samples. All he said was "mmhmm," which was not very encouraging to Owen and Cristina.<p>

Owen and Cristina waited in his office, as the doctor collected his preliminary results from the in-house laboratory. He came in, sat down, read the results and said "Mmhmm." He looked up and noticed their anxious faces.

"Well, I think it seems we have to go back to Exam Room 1," he said.

"Why?" Owen asked, now totally alarmed. "What's wrong with her?"

"Nothing," Dr. Storm said. "I thought you might be interested in seeing your baby on the ultrasound."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Please leave your comments. Thank you. Please let me know if you enjoy this.**


	24. Chapter 24 Aftershocks

Cristina lay on the exam room table as the doctor ran the ultrasound wand over her stomach.

"So didn't you notice anything strange about your menstruation cycle, Cristina?" Dr. Storm asked.

"I have been very busy these past few months. We're planning our wedding next month plus we had birthday parties for two of our children. My period was the last thing I was thinking about. I just thought it was the stress of everything that had just affected it," Cristina said.

"Mmhmm," the doctor said. Owen and Cristina did not like the sound of that.

"What do you mean 'Mmhmm'?" Owen asked. He wished that this doctor would be a little more articulate than that.

"Oh, I am sorry," the doctor said, spinning the monitor so the couple would get a closer look. "I guess you can clearly see the two sacs. So it's twins. Plus it appears to me that you are about eight weeks along," the doctor said.

"Two?" Owen repeated. "Twins?" He broke out in a huge grin. He looked at Cristina. She looked dazed, shell-shocked. She said nothing.

"So by the time of the wedding, Cristina, you will be about 14 weeks," Owen said. Again, Cristina said nothing. She really seemed out of it, he thought.

"So you have a OB/GYN, seeing that you had a baby a year ago?" Dr. Storm asked.

"Yes," Owen said. "Dr. Sharon Waters."

"Ah, yes," Storm said. "Well, she is an excellent OB/GYN. She will probably take over your care, now, since I am just a family physician. I will get you started on supplements. It seems that your fainting spells may have been due to the fact that you are anemic." Cristina nodded, but still was unable to speak. The doctor recognized that she was in shock.

"Cristina, it is going to be okay," Storm said. "I know you probably think that this is rather soon after the last baby but you can do it. You will have to take care of yourself. Two babies, this time." As they left the doctor's office, Dr Storm handed over a prescription to start her up on all of the supplements that she would need.

Owen stopped at a pharmacy and bought everything on the list, while Cristina stayed in the car. He dropped her off at her office.

"Well, I will pick you up later," he said. As she stepped out of the car, he echoed the doctor's words, "It is going to be okay, Cristina." She nodded, as she headed into the building.

As he drove back to his office, he could not help but be worried. Cristina seemed not to be taking the news of the pregnancy very well. She had not spoken, since they found out about the twins. He knew it was a surprise, more like a shock. He was ecstatic because he always wanted more children but Cristina had always been lukewarm to the idea, especially since they already had three children. Since he knew that Cristina would be bearing the burden of this pregnancy, he had to temper his happiness to accommodate how discontented she seemed to be feeling about it.

Later that day, he picked her up from her office and headed home. "So how was your day?" he asked.

"Okay," she answered, quietly. Cristina still seemed to be in a blue funk. She said nothing more, as she stared out of the window.

As they got home, Owen watched as Cristina took a deep breath and then, plastered a huge smile on her face before she entered the house. The kids came rushing, as soon as she stepped through the door. "Mommy," the two older children screamed, as they ran to hug Cristina. Baby Elyse, who was being held by Nina, put out her arms for her mother. She hugged the children, as they showered her with kisses and she took the baby into her arms. At least, she appeared to be normal with the children. All he could get from her was silence.

The children dragged her to the sofa, as they began telling her all about their day's adventures. She listened to their animated chatter, as the baby rested against her mother's chest. Everything seemed like it usually was on an evening in the Hunt household. They had their dinner and then, the three children were tucked in their beds.

Things were quiet in the master bedroom. Cristina sat on her side of the bed, rubbing lotion on her legs. He was exasperated by her silence.

"Cristina, you have to say something," he said. "I know that the day has been a total shock to you, but this is not going to go away. We are going to have two more babies. It has been a shock for me, too."

She gave him a sideways glance. "I know you're happy, so don't pretend that you're not, for my sake."

"Yes, I am happy. Is that so wrong? I am going to be a father again, two times over, too. You know I love kids," he said. "I am glad that our family is getting bigger. But I can tell that you are not."

"Owen, we already have three kids and that is hard enough. In seven months, we are going to have five kids. Elyse will not even be two years old as yet and for all intents and purposes, still a baby. Then, we are adding new-borns into the mix. This is going to be difficult, Owen," she said. "And we are not even married as yet."

"We're getting married, next month," he said. "We will be married, by the time the babies come."

She rolled her eyes. "Oh, God, the wedding!" she said in a frustrated tone. "The huge garden wedding with the 200 guests with the big, white dress and the four-tiered wedding cake. I can't forget about that."

He was hurt when she said that. He knew she wasn't crazy about the big wedding but she didn't have to say it like that. He wondered if she was just picking a fight because of the baby news.

"I am not going to fight with you," he said. He got in on his side of the bed and turned away from her. She got in her side and turned away from him. It was just as well, she didn't want him to see her silent tears.

She was so frustrated. She was finally getting a handle on her life, striking a good balance between her family life and her career. With two more children on the way, what was going to happen to her? Was she going to lose herself as a person? She knew she loved her children but her whole life was not about being just their mother. Or Owen's wife, if she married him next month, she thought. She was taken aback by her own thoughts. She had actually thought "if" and not "when." That was bad, she knew. She physically shuddered.

It seemed everything was closing in on her. The kids, the pregnancy, the wedding, everything was just becoming too much. She was feeling extremely overwhelmed.

She needed time to herself. She needed to get away from it all. She needed to think.

* * *

><p>When Owen woke up the next morning, he reached over for Cristina to cuddle. He was hoping that the night had allowed her to come to terms with the pregnancy and she would be feeling better about it. His arms felt only emptiness. He opened his eyes. She was not there.<p>

"Cristina," he called out. There was no answer. He went to the bathroom. Maybe she went to check on the kids. He opened each bedroom door, quietly. First, Matt's room, no Cristina. The same thing in Leah's room. Then he checked the baby's room. Elyse was still sleeping quietly.

He went downstairs and methodically checked each room. He then checked the garage; her car was missing. Cristina had left. He wondered why she would go to work this early. He made himself a cup of coffee and sat at the kitchen table. It was only then that he noticed the envelope, leaning against the table centerpiece. In Cristina's unmistakeable script was his name.

He ripped open the envelope. It was a short note. He read it aloud to himself. "Dear Owen, I need some time to think. I need some time away. Tell the children that I love them and that I will be back soon. Cristina." He got his phone and rang her number. Her phone was off because his call went straight to voice mail.

He was so mad. How could she just get leave like this? He knew she was upset about the pregnancy and the wedding but for her to just leave like this, he could not believe it. He didn't even know how long she would be gone.

Maybe, Shauna knew where Cristina was. He called Shauna. A male voice answered her phone. "Hello, I am sorry to disturb you. May I speak to Shauna?" he said. A breathless Shauna came on the phone. "Speak. This has to be important, whoever you are, to be calling me at this hour."

"Shauna, it is Owen Hunt. I was wondering whether you had heard from Cristina," Owen asked.

"Oh, Owen. Cristina? No, I haven't spoken to her, since yesterday. She was in a sour mood and didn't want to talk to anybody in the office," Shauna said. "What happened?"

"Um, she heard some news that she was not too happy about. She left me a note, saying that she needed some time away," Owen said. He felt a little embarrassed to be discussing his troubles to Shauna, since they only had a professional relationship, while she and Cristina were friends.

"Okay, well, if I hear from her, I will call you," Shauna said. "She will have to call into work, today, to explain her absence."

"Just let me know, please," he said. He sighed. It was usually Cristina who woke up the kids and sent them down for their breakfast. That was not going to happen, today. He woke Matt up, first, who was surprised to see his dad. Then, he woke up Leah and finally, the baby was already up. Without Cristina's help, there was no time for morning rituals, like Matt's two-minute hug. He needed to get them their breakfast before Nina came and he was out of the door to go to work. Their usual morning routine required two people, he realized. He was just grateful that it was summer and the children did not have to go to school.

"Where is Mommy?" Matt asked. He had missed his mother's comforting hug, when he woke up.

"Mommy has gone away on a business trip," he said.

"And she didn't say goodbye?" Leah was incredulous. Whenever her mommy went away, she always told them first and gave them each a hug and a kiss.

"Well, Mommy had to leave really early to catch a flight," Owen said. He felt bad to be lying to his kids. Cristina had put him in a spot, here. "She did tell me to tell you that she loves you very much and will be back soon."

"When?" Matt demanded to know.

"Soon," Owen said. He didn't have a clue what to tell his son. That answer did not satisfy Matt, who was extremely attached to Cristina. The little boy's eyes narrowed. Something was going on here and his daddy did not want to tell him.

Owen wondered whether to tell the children about the news about the babies to distract them. He decided against it. It was something that he and Cristina needed to do together. Plus he was a little afraid of what Cristina might do. Yes, he allowed his mind to go there. She had totally freaked out, he knew, and in that state, he didn't know if she would take the unthinkable step of terminating the pregnancy.

Surely, she wouldn't do that, he thought. She couldn't, he reasoned. Not the Cristina he knew. But then again, she wasn't really acting the way she normally did. "Please come home, Cristina," he said, quietly.

"What did you say, Papa?" Leah asked.

"Um, nothing important, Leah. Eat your cereal," he said, sitting down. He put his head down on the table. The children stared at him.

* * *

><p>The scenery was just a blur to Cristina. When she left the house that morning, she really wasn't sure where she was going. She just knew she had to get away for a bit. Get away from her life, allow herself to think. She found herself driving a familiar route. She knew where she was headed. She finally stopped driving, when she saw the blue house. It was the house she had lived in during her first marriage. She didn't know why she ended up there.<p>

She slowly went up the walkway and rang the bell. After ringing the bell two more times, a dishevelled Ian, still dressed in his pajamas, opened the door.

"Cristina, what are you doing here?" he asked.

"I don't know," she said.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Please leave your comments. I do appreciate reading your thoughts.**


	25. Chapter 25 Words of wisdom

"Please don't tell me that anything has happened to Leah. Just kill me now," Ian said. His heart had sunk to his stomach.

"No, she is fine. When I left, she was sleeping. Can I come in?" Cristina asked.

"Sure," he said. "Just got a little distracted there. I thought something had happened to Leah and you were coming to tell me the bad news. That would have been the worst news of my life." He looked at his former wife's face. He could see the tiredness and worry on it.

"Hey, what has happened? Why are you here? Did something happen between you and Owen?" he asked.

"Kind of," she said. She headed to the kitchen. She needed a large cup of coffee after that 40-mile drive to Ian's house. Ian sat down at the kitchen table, as he watched her make them two cups of coffee. She knew where exactly everything was – the coffee, the mugs, the sugar from the cupboards and the half and half in the refrigerator. After all, she should know, she lived there for most of her twenties.

She turned around and gasped. "I am sorry. I forgot to ask. Is Miranda here? I really don't mean to intrude."

"No, Miranda is not here. We had a fight and we're taking a break," he said, ruefully.

"I am so sorry to hear that," she said, as she brought the cups of coffee to the table.

"Well, our fight was the same usual fight. Well, I had to drop off Leah on Saturday night to your house so she could be there for Elyse's birthday party. Miranda called and asked if she could come along," he said. "I asked Leah, who naturally refused, as I had expected. When I came home that night, Miranda and I had a blowup about how I was allowing a six-year-old child to dictate my social life. I mean it is true, but Leah is the apple of my eye."

"And boy, does she know that. She has you wrapped around her little finger," Cristina said.

"Yeah, but she is the only little girl that I have. Girlfriends can come and go but I will always have Leah," he said, wistfully.

"Yeah, but suppose Miranda is the one for you. You have to think about yourself, too," Cristina said. "Little girls do grow up."

"Yes, I know. I really like Miranda, maybe even love her but I think we need a cooling-off period right now," he said. They both sipped on their coffee. "So what brings you here on this early morning visit? Aren't you supposed to be going to work, about now?"

"Yeah, I am but I e-mailed my boss and told him that I won't be in, today. I am in crisis, Ian," she said.

"Crisis? I thought you had everything all together. You have a beautiful house, three wonderful children, a loving partner and a great job. I am the one who is in a mess, right now," Ian said.

"Do you notice anything different about me?" she asked. She stood up and turned around.

"No, you look fine. A little tired around the eyes but fine," he said. She sighed.

"I am pregnant," she said, as she sat down.

"Again?" he said. "I am sorry, that was the wrong response. It is just that your last baby just celebrated her first birthday. I really should be offering my congratulations." She didn't look at all happy. "Or should I not be offering my congratulations," he added, when he saw her face.

"I mean I should be happy about this, right? Women are supposed to be happy when they get pregnant for the man they love," she said.

"I should think so. What's wrong? You have got your whole life together. I am sure Owen is happy about this turn of events," he said.

"Yeah, he is. Ecstatic, in fact. He always wanted more kids. Me, I was happy with the three we have living in our house," Cristina said. "And you know the worst part is – I am having twins."

"Oh, my word," Ian said. "Now that is a shocker. No wonder you seem so out of it. Ooh, five children. That will be quite a handful. I sometimes find Leah is difficult to deal with. I cannot imagine what it would be like with five children."

"Exactly," Cristina said. "If you know the pressures that I have been feeling for the past two months, with the upcoming wedding and then we had two birthday parties plus I have Owen's mom, hinting rather loudly about me having more babies."

"Ah, she has cursed you and you became pregnant," Ian said, triumphantly, as if he had figured it all out.

"No, you idiot," Cristina said, laughing. It felt good. It was the first time she had a good laugh in weeks. "I was already pregnant when she broached the topic of more children. Little did I know then that I was already knocked up."

"You do seem to get pregnant at the drop of a hat," Ian said. "You are rather fertile. Your womb is like a mecca for babies."

"Will you stop going on, Ian?" Cristina said. "I am here for advice."

"Okay, tell me what you are feeling," he said. "The psychologist is in. Since Lucy from Peanuts charges five cents, that is my charge, too." Cristina solemnly took out a nickel out of her purse and placed it in front of him. They both grinned. It was something they used to do when she used to come to him for advice, when they first met.

"I am afraid of losing myself. Am I just going to be someone's mother for the rest of my life? Or Owen's wife? What has happened to Cristina Yang, the girl who was going to conquer the world? You are the only person who knew me then, before our marriage, before all of these babies. Am I the same person?" she asked.

"Cristina, I met you when you were 20 years old. You were young, carefree, no responsibilities. You lived life by the moment. But you are 30, now. You have three children, a job, a man, a house. Life has given you responsibilities. Life changes you and makes you different. But you are still the same in here," he said, pounding his chest. "In your heart. The essence of you is still the same. The young girl who I fell in love with, is still within you. She is still there but she has matured. You're still you."

She had a doubtful expression. "Now you make me sound like an old geezer."

"There is nothing wrong with getting older, Cristina. We're all getting older. We've grown up. But you haven't lost yourself, Cristina. Yes, you are going to be Owen's wife. Yes, you are Matt, Leah and Elyse's mom. And you are going to be the mom of these beautiful new babies. But these are all great things. Can you imagine your life without them in it?" he said. She shook her head.

"Then, you shouldn't be running away from them. You were a wonderful girl but you are an amazing woman," he continued.

"Do you miss her – the girl that you fell in love with?" she asked.

"Sometimes but I also love the woman she grew up to be," he said.

"You still love me?" she asked, a little bit surprised.

"Cristina, I will always love you. You are the mother of my child. You were my first love. Those things never go away. Maybe we don't have romantic love anymore and it has morphed into something else, but it is still love. I am glad that we are friends," he said.

"You know you've grown up, too," she said.

"Yeah, I did. I made some horrible mistakes and it made me grow up," he said. "I kinda lost everything that was important to me. I was forced to look at myself and realize that I had to grow up."

"You know you are a good dad. Leah is lucky she has you to come to, when she has questions. If only she would let you date," Cristina chuckled.

"Yeah, well, that is an ongoing struggle," Ian admitted. "But I love my baby girl. So what are you going to do now?"

"I am going home to see my fiancé and my kids," she said. "Thanks." She gave him a hug as she left.

* * *

><p>Owen had changed his mind and decided to stay home with his older children, while Nina looked after Elyse. He had just finished laying out the children's lunch, when Cristina arrived home. It was Matt, who saw her at first. "Mommy," he screamed. "Daddy said you had gone away." He ran to hug her, followed by Leah.<p>

"Mommy, why did you leave without saying goodbye?" Leah asked, accusingly.

"I left very early this morning and I didn't want to wake you up," Cristina said, kissing them on the top of their heads. Owen looked at her. He was grateful that she was back but he was still mad at her.

"So how was your trip?" Owen said.

"Productive," she answered.

"Kids, I want to talk to Mommy, so come and have your lunch, so Mommy and I can go talk in the study," Owen said.

"Yes, I need to talk to Daddy, too. But Leah, Matt, we have something really wonderful to tell you," Cristina said.

"What? What?" the children screamed.

"Remember when we told you about Elyse growing in Mommy's belly before she was born," Cristina said. The children's eyes grew wide as saucers.

"Another baby in Mommy's belly!" Matt screamed. "It is going to be a boy this time. Even out the numbers."

"Well, we don't know if they are going to be boys or girls," Owen said, trying to temper Matt's enthusiasm.

"They?" Leah said. She really was an astute little girl.

"Yes, Leah. They. We are having two babies," Cristina said. The two children started jumping around. "Two babies, two babies," Matt yelled. The children gave Cristina a hug. They were so excited.

"Settle down, now," Owen said. "You need to have your lunch. The babies are not going to be here in several months. We will be back in a bit." The two children went and sat at the table and started eating their lunch. Cristina followed Owen to his study.

"Well, that was a surprise that you actually told them," Owen said, as he closed the door behind them.

"Yeah, well they had to know, some time," she said. "The babies are not going away."

"So where did you disappear to?" he asked. "I was very worried."

"I went to see Ian," she said.

"WHAT?" he was incredulous. "You couldn't talk to me but you could talk to your ex-husband. How do you think that makes me feel?"

"Yes, I am sorry about that. But I needed to get away to clear my head. I was feeling overwhelmed with everything happening at the same time," she said.

"So clearing your head means you go back to your ex?" he said. He was upset.

"I went to Ian because he was the only one who knows me from way back when. Before marriage, before babies, before working. When I was 20 years old and still hoping to take over the world," she said. "I was afraid that I was losing myself."

"So being with me and having my babies is you losing yourself," he was hurt.

"No, I love being with you and I love all of my babies," she said. "Ian reminded me that even though I have grown older and life may have changed me, I was still me. He also asked me if I could live life without you or the kids and the answer to that is no," she said. "I can't imagine life without you. I may have yearned to be that 20-year-old again but you and the kids have made my life that much better. People need me, now. The kids remind me that I am loved and wanted, every day, without question."

"I love and want you, every day without question, too," he said.

"I know that. I am sorry. I just freaked out," she said, as she went to him and hugged him. He wrapped his arms around her. They stayed in a tight embrace for what seemed a long time.

"I was thinking," he said. "If you just want to go down to City Hall, we could do that," he said. "I know you are not crazy about the big wedding."

"It's okay. I am ready to marry you and I am ready to wear the white dress and walk down the aisle and become your wife, in front of everybody," she said.

"Are you sure?" he said.

"Yes, I am sure," she said. "We are going to be husband and wife."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Please leave your comments. Reviews are love. **


	26. Chapter 26 The wedding

Cristina woke up at 5 a.m. It was the day of their wedding. Since it was an outdoor wedding, they decided to have it at 10 a.m. before it got too hot and then have a luncheon afterwards. It was just as well, this twin pregnancy often made her feel tired, nearer the end of the day, when all she wanted to do was sleep.

Owen and Cristina had not spent the night together at the house as he had stayed at a hotel. They would not see each other, until he saw her, walking down the aisle. Matt had also spent the night at the hotel with Owen. Nina had stayed overnight at the Hunt home so she would take care of Elyse, since Cristina would not have time to take care of the baby, as well as get ready for her wedding.

Leah had slept with her mother and stirred when she realized that her mother was awake. The tiny girl stretched and opened her eyes.

"You're getting married today, Mommy. I get to wear my pretty blue dress," Leah said. "Daddy is coming, right?"

"Yeah, baby, Daddy is coming," Cristina said. She did fail to mention to her young daughter that Ian was bringing Miranda as his date to the wedding. There was no need to upset Leah before the wedding. She would see Miranda, when the time came. The tantrum could come later, Cristina thought.

There was a knock on the door. It was Shauna, who had slept in one of the guest rooms, since they had to get an early start. "Get up," Shauna said. "You two need to get up. Big day, today. We have to go to the estate to get ready but first, we must have breakfast. Nina has prepared a fantastic breakfast for us. We need as much nutrition as possible."

* * *

><p>Owen, Matt and Owen's brother, Joseph were having a hearty breakfast, at an all-night diner. The hotel restaurant did not serve breakfast this early in the morning, so they checked out and found themselves at the diner. "So, Owen, you're looking extremely chipper and happy, even though it is 5 a.m.," Joseph said.<p>

"I am," Owen said. "Going to marry my lovely fiancée. We're going to be a big, happy family. Isn't that right, Matt?"

"Yup," Matt said, as he hungrily ate his crepes.

"When we are done with breakfast, we are going over to the estate to get dressed," Owen said.

"Won't Mommy see us?" Matt asked. "I thought you weren't supposed to see each other before the wedding."

"No, Mommy, Leah and Shauna are going to be in the estate house, while you, Uncle Joseph and I will be in the guest house. So we won't see each other," Owen said. "You can drop across my present for Cristina, Joseph."

"What is it?" Joseph asked.

"Diamond necklace. I got it at Tiffany's. I have it here in my pocket," he said. He took out the box and showed it to his brother. Joseph groaned. "Please don't show that to my wife. I mean, seriously bro, you just want to make a guy look bad here," he said.

"I just wanted something special for Cristina. When I saw it, I knew I had to get it for her for her wedding present," Owen said. Matt stared at the necklace. He had no idea of the value of the necklace, except that it was all sparkly. "Pretty, Daddy. Mommy will like it."

"I hope so, son," Owen said, as he put away the box back into his pocket. After breakfast, they headed to the estate. He wondered if Cristina was already there. He could not contain his excitement about finally getting married.

* * *

><p>Cristina had indeed arrived already. She, Shauna and Leah were up in the room that had been set aside for the bride and her entourage. Soon, the hair stylist and the makeup artist were going to be there. She had already had her nails done the day before at the spa. A photographer was also going to make an appearance to take candid photos of the bride getting ready for her day. Elyse was not there, since Nina was going to bring her just before the ceremony started. There was no need for the baby to be there that early.<p>

Cristina had long resigned herself for a wedding that had all of the traditional trappings. She may not have been too crazy about it in the beginning but in the days leading up to the wedding, she had decided to develop a better attitude towards it. She didn't want to admit it but she was pretty darn excited about the wedding. Judy had done a fabulous job, planning the wedding. The venue looked totally amazing.

She was still musing about it when the hairstylist arrived to do her hair. She was going to wear it up with a veil and flowers. Then the makeup artist came to do her makeup. Leah was very fascinated by the transformation. Mommy looked like an angel, she thought. Leah was also getting her hair done with flowers in it. She had a brand-new basket, which was already filled with her flowers that she was going to drop, while going down the aisle.

The photographer was snapping like crazy, anxious to capture every moment. Everything stopped for while when there was a knock on the door. It was Joseph, dropping off Owen's present. "Thank you, Joe," Cristina said. "You're not dressed as yet."

"Well, you know us guys just need an hour before the ceremony to just put on our suits," Joseph said, handing her the blue box.

"I have something for Owen, too," she said, handing over a present.

"Great," he said, as he took the box. "I guess I will see you ladies when you come down the aisle." Joseph walked over to the guest house, where Owen and Matt were.

"So you gave it to her in her hand?" Owen asked.

"Yes, I did, what is wrong with you? She gave me this for you," Joseph said. Owen opened the box, eagerly. It was a watch, a Rolex, with an engraving on the back. "Together forever" along with their wedding date. He immediately took off the watch he was wearing and put on the new watch. "I just want to get married, now," he said.

"Savor your last few hours as a single man," Joseph said, jokingly. "After that, it is all downhill."

"Never," Owen said. "It will never be downhill with Cristina at my side. She makes my life worth living." Joseph smiled – his brother was so in love.

Back in Cristina's room, she was almost dressed. She stepped into her gown. She was glad that she had chosen the Grecian style. Its flowing lines hid the baby bump very well. She was now three-and-a-half months pregnant. She opened Owen's present and gasped at the beauty of the diamond necklace. Shauna helped her put it on.

"You look gorgeous, Cristina," Shauna said. "And the baby bump is well hidden."

"Thank you, Shauna," Cristina said. "Really want that baby bump to be hidden. We're going to announce it, later."

"So be-yoo-ti-ful, Mommy," Leah said. She had already put on her baby blue dress.

"So are you, Leah," Cristina said. "Your daddy is going to flip, when he sees how pretty you look." Leah's smile lit up her entire face.

There was a knock on the door. Shauna opened it to reveal Cristina's parents. Helen and Charlie Hunt stepped inside.

"Ah, Cristina, you look lovely," Helen said. She looked at her granddaughter. "You, too, Leah, very pretty." Cristina dutifully accepted an air kiss from her mother. Neither wanted to mess up each other's make-up. Her father gave her a bear hug. "Not so tight," Helen said. "You don't want to mess up the dress."

Charlie pulled back because he definitely felt the baby bump. His eyes questioned her and Cristina nodded. He smiled. He was going to have another grandchild. It was clear to him that Cristina was not telling anyone as yet, so he decided to keep it quiet. As they left, Judy came up to the room. "Just saw your dad, told him to wait at the entrance. My, you look beautiful, Cristina. Are you ready? It is going to be showtime in a bit."

"Yes, thank you, Judy," Cristina said. "Let's go down. Have you seen Owen?"

"Yes, he is at the top of the aisle with his best man and the reverend," Judy said. "He looks very handsome. Matt is also with your father at the entrance. So everyone is in place."

"Okay, let's get this show on the road," Cristina said. Shauna helped her with her veil, as they headed down to the area where the wedding was going to be held. "Dad," Cristina said, as she took her father's arm. The first strains of Con Te Partiro started.

Shauna headed down the aisle first. Then it was the big moment for the ring bearer and the flower girl. Leah and Matt started down the aisle. Matt was very careful not to drop his pillow, while Leah was busy looking for her daddy. She finally spotted him and gave him a huge smile. Ian smiled and waved back. It was only then that Leah noticed Miranda sitting next to Ian. The smile disappeared from Leah's face.

Then, the disaster happened. She was so mad at seeing Miranda that she suddenly tripped. A cloud of flowers went up into the air. The guests gasped at the little girl's fall. Matt stopped and helped his sister up, before they both picked up the flowers. Leah stood up, plastered a smile on her face and straightened out her dress before she continued dropping her flowers down the aisle. Owen was so proud of Matt for helping his sister and of Leah for regaining her composure. Then, it was time for Cristina and her dad. Owen could see how beautiful she looked and he could feel himself tearing up. By the time Cristina's dad handed her over to him, he needed to wipe the tear that was trickling down the side of his face.

"Don't cry, honey, you are going to make me cry and I am going to mess up all of this make-up," Cristina whispered.

"Okay, I will try," he said. "But you look so beautiful." She squeezed his hand. The rest of the ceremony went off without a hitch.

It was at the reception that Owen decided it was the right time to make the announcement. Mr. Yang, Mr. Hunt, Joseph and Shauna had already spoken and they had all managed to appropriately embarrass both the bride and groom with various anecdotes. Then, it was Owen's turn to speak on behalf of his new wife and himself.

"Cristina and I are very pleased that you could have joined us here today. We have loved sharing this moment with all of our friends and family. My beautiful bride and I have a special announcement to make. It may not have been too obvious with the dress she was wearing. I am so happy to say that we are expecting new babies to add to our family," Owen said.

"Did you say babies, as in plural?" Ellen Hunt said. She grinned from ear to ear.

"Yes, mom, babies. We are having twins and Cristina is three and a half months pregnant," Owen said, proudly.

The guests all clapped wildly. Charlie caught his daughter's eye. Father and daughter both shared a moment by themselves.

* * *

><p>Owen and Cristina had their first dance to "Keep Each Other Warm" by Barry Manilow. "You know, Owen, I was fighting this big wedding all of the way but you know, it turned out to be beautiful," Cristina said, looking up at her husband, her eyes full of love.<p>

"I just wanted you to have a beautiful memory," he said. "I love you so much and I love my family so much. I have never been happier in my life. Did you see that fall that Leah took?"

"Yes, my poor baby," Cristina said. "But Matt helped her up and they continued down the aisle. I love my kids."

"I think it was because she caught sight of Miranda with Ian," Owen chuckled. "Just take a look at Ian and Leah, now." Cristina glanced at her former husband and their daughter, who was comfortably sitting on his lap. Miranda was next to Ian at the table but she had no chance with him, since Leah was making sure she had all of Ian's attention.

"Poor Ian," Cristina said. "No, poor Miranda," Owen replied. "She cannot compete with Leah. By the way, I have a surprise for you."

"You know I hate surprises," she said. "Tell me now."

"Just wait, baby," he said.

It was much later, when everyone was dancing, that Owen took the stage with his guitar. "Let me beg your indulgence. I wrote this song for my wife. Yeah, I am going to be cheesy and all that. But I love this woman." Owen started with a sweet, slow ballad in which he poured out his feelings about the love of his wife and his family. When he was done, Cristina, who had Elyse in her lap, had tears in her eyes, as she blew him a kiss. He came over to her and kissed her with two soft smooches. "That was beautiful," Cristina told him.

"It's just how I feel," Owen said. He sat down next to her and took her hand into his. They looked around and watched all of their family and friends enjoying themselves. It was a festive, joyful scene.

"It's been a great day," Cristina said. "And yes, Owen, you were right. I have the memory, now. Thanks."

He kissed her hand and smiled. "One to last for the rest of our lives."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Please leave your comments. Thanks for the reviews. This story will soon be coming to an end – maybe one or two chapters more, depending on how I feel.**


	27. Chapter 27 Twin babies' arrival

It was in early spring that Cristina started feeling the pains. She was on bed rest from work, since she could not cope with the heavy weight of the twins on a full-time work load. Given the size of Elyse at birth, she was worried about how big these babies were going to turn out, so they had made an appointment for a C-section in three days. Clearly, these babies were having other ideas.

"Nina, Nina," she called out, as she waddled from her bedroom to find the nanny. Nina came out of Elyse's nursery, followed by the now 19-month-old toddler. "Mama," Elyse said.

"Is it time?" Nina said. Cristina nodded. "Yes, I think so. Damn these babies. I have a C-section planned in three days. Could you not have been good babies and stayed there until then?" she said, gripping her stomach.

"Nina, I think you have to call Mr. Hunt and tell him it is time, so he can come home and take me to the hospital. Call Shauna and tell her to pick up the kids this afternoon and to bring them home. I think that Mr. Hunt and I will probably be still at the hospital by then. And Nina, I think you will probably be spending the night here," Cristina said.

"That's okay. I packed my overnight bag, a couple of days ago and left it in the guest room, just in case, something like this happened," Nina said, picking up Elyse in her arms. "I will call everyone. Can you get downstairs by yourself? I will bring down the bag you packed for the hospital."

"Yes, I can," Cristina said, as she eased down the stairs and sat on the sofa, waiting for Owen. She didn't have to wait long. As soon as Owen got the word that she had gone into labor, he immediately left his meeting, saying that they could carry on without him as his wife was going to have their twins. Everyone clapped at the news. He jumped in his vehicle and seemingly broke his own speed record to get home. Thankfully, he had green lights all of the way home. It was like the gods were smiling on him.

He rushed into the house, flustered and sweating. He found his wife, calmly sitting on the sofa, with her bag, next to her.

"Ah, Owen," she said. "You got here really fast."

"I got all green all of the way home," he said. "It was just amazing. So you're ready?"

"Yes, more than ready. I was ready two weeks ago," she said. He helped her up and they made their way out of the front door.

"Nina, we're gone," she said. Nina peered over the balcony with Elyse in her arms. "Good luck, Mrs. Hunt. Don't worry about the kids. I have got them covered. Shauna said she will drop them off and then go to the hospital, afterwards. Bye."

"Thanks," Cristina said. As they slowly walked to Owen's car, she said, "Poor Nina."

"Why poor Nina?" Owen asked.

"Because we keep bringing more and more children into the world for her to see about," Cristina said.

"Don't worry about Nina. She is going to get a huge raise, plus a Christmas bonus," Owen said. "Just be concerned about yourself." As he said that, she said, "Oooh," and gripped her side.

"Let's just get you to the hospital in a jiffy," he said. It really was if the gods were smiling on them, they got green lights all of the way to the hospital. They saw an orderly with a wheelchair. "Can my wife get that? She's having twins," Owen said. "Sure," said the orderly. "I will get another one." Cristina gratefully sat in the wheelchair, as Owen rushed her to the OB department.

"Can you call Dr. Waters?" Owen asked the nurse on duty. "She's my wife's OB. We're ready to have the babies." He was very excited. The nurse looked at him, unimpressed.

"Name," she said. "Cristina Hunt," Owen said. The nurse went to her computer and typed in Cristina's name. "Ah, good, you pre-registered. You don't have to fill out the paperwork. It seems that you were scheduled for a C-section three days from now."

"Yes, we were," Owen said. "But the babies apparently don't work, according to the schedule."

"Okay, let's have one of the attendants take her to her room and I will have Dr. Waters paged," the nurse said. "Tyler, please take Mrs. Hunt to 2334."

They were escorted to their room, while a couple of nurses came and hooked her up to a couple of machines. Dr. Waters came rushing in. "These babies are in a hurry," she said. "How are the contractions?"

"Not too bad," Cristina said. "Let's take a look," the doctor said. She examined Cristina. "It seems you have a while to go, if you want to deliver, vaginally or we can schedule the C-section."

"C-section," Cristina said, immediately. The pain of delivering Elyse, that huge Hunt baby, was still a vivid memory.

"Well, okay then,' Dr. Waters said. "Let's get you prepped."

* * *

><p>A couple of hours later, Shauna rushed into the OB ward and rushed to Cristina's room. When she got there, she found Cristina asleep in the bed and Owen asleep on a chair. They both look tired. She decided to wake up Owen.<p>

"What happened? Is it over, already?" Shauna asked. She would have been there, earlier but she had to pick up the two older children and drop them off at the Hunt house.

"Oh, Shauna, hi," Owen said, rubbing his eyes. "Yeah, it is all over. She had a C-section. The twins have been born. Oh, by the way, thanks for picking up Matt and Leah."

"That's no problem. So what are they?" Shauna asked. "I knew you two wanted to be surprised."

"Well, there are now more boys than girls in the Hunt household," Owen grinned. "Two boys. One blonde, the other dark-haired. Leah is going to be so disappointed. Did the kids give you any trouble?"

"No," Shauna said. "They were pretty excited. They wanted to come to the hospital with me but I wasn't sure how far things had progressed in here."

"Oh, okay. I better give them a call," Owen said. He pulled out his phone but before he could do that, he heard Cristina's voice, calling his name.

"Owen," she called out. He got up and went to her. He stroked her head, "Hey, baby, you're up."

"Yeah, I thought I heard someone's voice," Cristina said, still struggling to open her eyes.

"Yeah, I am here," Shauna said. "I just dropped off the kids and came as soon as I could."

"Shauna," Cristina said. "Did you hear it's two boys?"

"Yeah, Owen just told me," Shauna said. "I am so happy for the two of you. What did you all decide to name them?"

"Jakob and Lukas, both spelled with a k in the middle," Owen said. "Both of them about six pounds and healthy."

"That's wonderful," Shauna said. "I guess I will leave you two alone and go take a look at the babies." Shauna gave her friend a kiss before she left.

"Cristina, I was now going to call the kids and tell them about the babies," Owen said. "Let's call them together." He dialed the number and then put it on speakerphone, so Cristina could hear. The phone was picked up but it seemed like a scuffle was going on at the other end. They could hear Leah saying, "Give it to me." Matt answered, "I am older, I should answer the phone." There was some scuffling until they heard Matt's voice.

"Daddy, is this you?" Matt said. "Did the babies come? What are they?"

"Yes, Matt, it is me and Mommy. Yes, the babies did come. You can tell your sister that we have two more boys."

Matt started to whoop. "Two boys, Leah. Two boys, Leah." They heard Leah's small voice, saying, "Noooooooooooooooooooooo. Not two boys!" She grabbed the phone from Matt. "Mommy, how could you do this? Two boys. Now there are more boys than girls in the house," she said. Cristina could just imagine her pouting on the other side.

"Leah, one of the babies is blonde and the other baby has dark hair like us. So, there are more people with dark hair than blondes. Only Papa, Matt and Jakob are blonde. You, me, Elyse and Lukas all have dark hair," Cristina said, trying to comfort her daughter.

"Oh, good! That's their names – Jakob and Lukas," Leah said. They could hear her talking to her brother. "Their names are Lukas and Jakob, Matt."

"Leah, tell Matt that we will bring you kids by to see the new babies, tomorrow. Mommy needs to rest, now," Owen said. "I will be home in a bit."

"Okay, Papa," Leah said. "Bye." They heard Matt screaming "goodbye" in the background. He was still whooping it up.

* * *

><p>The next day, Owen and the children came by, early. It was Saturday and there was no school. The children rushed into Cristina's room. "Mommy, Mommy," they yelled and jumped on her bed to kiss her.<p>

"Hey, babies, have you been good?" Cristina said.

"Yes," they both nodded, vigorously. "Where are the babies?" Matt asked.

"The nurses are going to bring them in a bit," Cristina said. "They should be coming, now." Two minutes later, the nurses wheeled in the babies, who were both wrapped in blue blankets.

"Ooh, ooh, ooh," Leah said. They both got off Cristina's bed as the nurse placed one baby in Cristina's arms and the other baby in Owen's arms.

"Okay, kids, Daddy is holding Lukas. He has dark hair," Cristina said. "I have Jakob. He is blonde. So they are very easy to tell apart." She was so happy that the babies turned out to be fraternal twins and not identical. It made life so much easier to be able to tell them apart.

The children peered at their little brothers. "They are very cute," Leah said. She had to admit it that the babies were cute, even if they were boys.

"Yes, they are," Cristina. "All of my babies are beautiful." Matt looked a little crestfallen. He knew that he was not Cristina's biological baby. She looked at him. "Every single one of them, from my big boy, Matt to my littlest babies, Jakob and Lukas." His smile lit up his face. His mommy just said that he was her big boy.

"Poor Elyse, she is missing out on seeing the babies," Matt said.

"Elyse will see the babies, when we go home," Owen said, as he placed Lukas next to Cristina. "Let's gather up around Mommy and let's take a picture to remember the first time you guys saw the babies." The two older children climbed on to the foot of the bed. "Everyone say cheese."

"Cheeeeeeeeeeese," Matt and Leah said. Owen had to laugh because both Matt and Leah were missing their front teeth. They both looked so funny.

* * *

><p>The only person of the family who had not yet met the babies was Elyse. When they finally came home, they were placed in their very own nursery, which was next to Elyse's bedroom. Elyse was fascinated by these two squirmy creatures. She would climb up on their cribs and stare at them. Cristina was afraid she was going to fall, so they put a little step stool, so she could watch the babies, whenever she wanted. Whenever Elyse was missing, they knew exactly where she was. She would be in the nursery, looking at the babies. Owen would pick her up and she would say, "Baby, baby" and clap her hands in glee.<p>

"Yes, Elyse," he said. "Not too long ago, you were the baby." Sometimes, Cristina would find Owen in the rocking chair, holding Elyse, with the two babies in their cribs. All four would be asleep. The scene would warm her heart. She knew she had the good life.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Please leave your comments. One more chapter left.**


	28. Chapter 28 Farewell dinner

**A/N: Final chapter**

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><p><em><strong>Seven years later<strong>_

Fourteen-year-old Leah took a good look at herself in the mirror. She had just brushed out her long, dark, curly hair. It gently framed her delicate features. She thought she looked pretty. That was good. Tonight was her farewell dinner. Tomorrow, she would be leaving Texas to go to New Haven, Connecticut. Next week, she would be starting her freshman year at Yale on a full scholarship.

Cristina and Ian always knew that Leah was smart. They didn't know that she was super-intelligent. She had skipped the third, fifth and seventh grade. When she entered her senior year of high school at the age of 13, her then 14-year-old brother was now starting high school as a freshman. It was always hard for Matt, when Leah started to leave him behind in school. Owen always told him that he was a smart kid. He always brought home A's and B+'s but that Leah was just one of those people, who was exceedingly smart. She was a prodigy.

When Leah applied to Yale and got a full scholarship, Cristina was reluctant to send her to the East Coast. She wanted her baby girl to stay in Texas, especially since she was only 14 years old. But it was an opportunity that should not be passed up. Ian and Cristina discussed it and it was decided that Ian would move to New Haven and Leah would live with him, while she attended Yale. Leah was and always will be the apple of Ian's eye and he would do anything for her.

Ian had since re-married to a woman named Monique. She was the only one, who finally got Leah's approval. It was also probably because Leah realized that her dad needed to be with somebody. After Miranda, Ian had three other girlfriends before Monique. Leah had effectively managed to chase each one of them away because she knew her father would always choose her first.

Monique was different. She didn't try to mother Leah because she knew that Leah already had a mother. Instead, she became a friend. Monique was a violinist, an instrument that Leah also enjoyed. They would often play their violins together. Thus, a friendship was born through common interests. Ian was very happy that Leah was getting along with his girlfriend.

Monique married Ian when Leah was 10. They had a son named Cullen, who was now three. Ian had bought a house in New Haven and had already moved to Connecticut, so he and his family would not be attending Leah's farewell dinner.

Attending the dinner would be Nina, Grandpa and Grandma Yang, Grandpa and Grandma Murphy, Grandpa and Grandma Hunt, Owen's siblings, their spouses and all of their kids. There was going to be a lot of people in the house, plus her own family – Papa, Mom, Matt, Elyse, Jakob, Lukas and the most recent surprise, two-year-old Amélie. The toddler had corrected all imbalances in the house. As a blonde girl, she evened out the gender disparity as well as the blonde/brunette ratio. There were now four males and four females in the house, as well as four blondes and four brunettes. The toddler had the sunniest disposition and was always ready with a smile for anyone.

There was a knock on the door. "Come in," Leah said. It was her sister, Elyse, who had just turned nine earlier that month. She and Leah shared the same long, dark curly hair like their mother. They were very similar in looks, except Leah had hazel eyes and Elyse had blue eyes.

"Hey, Leah, Mom wants to know if you are ready," Elyse asked. Owen had originally worried that Elyse would have been a giant compared to her older sister and her mother but his fears were for naught. She was an average-sized girl, even though her older sister was definitely considered petite. At 14, Leah was only four foot eleven and weighed 90 pounds. It was her desperate hope that she made it to at least five foot two in the next few years. She looked younger than her 14 years and people would mistake her for being 11 or 12. This was one of the reasons that Cristina was initially reluctant to send Leah across the country, afraid that people would take advantage of Leah's small size.

"Yeah, I am ready. Is anyone here as yet?" Leah asked.

"Yeah, everyone is here. The whole Hunt side, Nina, Grandpa and Grandma Yang and your daddy's parents. We're just waiting on you. Plus they all brought going away presents," Elyse said, excitedly. "Everyone is just waiting for you."

They decided to have the dining arrangements out on their back patio with a very long, continuous table (made up of several tables) so that everyone could sit together. In all, it was 24 people at the table. The oldest person was Grandpa Hunt and the youngest person was Amélie, who was happily sitting in a high chair.

Everyone was already seated out in the patio. When Leah and Elyse came out, they all broke out in applause.

"Thank you, thank you," Elyse said, taking a bow, even though she knew the applause was not for her. She was such a joker. Everyone laughed.

"Thanks for the applause," Leah said. "I am not doing much to warrant it."

"Come on, Leah," Grandpa Murphy said. "It is rare that a Murphy gets into Yale on full scholarship, let alone at the age of 14. We tell everybody we have the brightest granddaughter ever."

Leah took her seat between her seven-year-old twin brothers, Jakob and Lukas, while Elyse sat down next to Matt, who was now 15.

"Well, we're all proud of our little Leah," Owen said. "And I do mean 'little.'" Leah made a face at him. "You know, folks, if it weren't for Leah, I wouldn't have my family, right now. Elyse, Jakob, Lukas and Amélie wouldn't have existed if it weren't for her."

"What do you mean?" Grandma Yang asked.

"Well, when Leah was four years old, she had a fascination for tropical fish. I badly wanted to introduce myself to Cristina," he said, reaching over and squeezing his wife's hand. "So I persuaded my five-year-old son to make friends with the tiny girl. Matt, of course, boasted to Leah, of the beautiful fish tank we had at home. Leah really wanted to see it, so there was my opening to get to know the future Mrs. Hunt. Yup, if it weren't for Leah."

"Hey, hey, I had a part in it, too," Matt said. "Dad, you used me to get to Mom."

"Yes, Matt, you were a vital part in it, too," Cristina told her son. "I guess we can all agree that everything turned out well in the end."

"Why don't we start our dinner?" Owen said. He signaled the servers to start bringing out the dishes, as the evening had been catered. There was a lot of "oohs" and "aahs" as the dishes came out.

As Leah looked around, she was going to miss these family get-togethers, she thought. She looked at her brother, Matt, who was sitting across the table from her. She was going to miss Matt the most of all of her siblings. Even though Matt was not her biological sibling like the rest of the brothers and sisters, she was closest to him. They were only six months apart in age. They were always the older siblings, who had to help take care of their younger ones. In looks, they provided a sharp contrast to each other. Matt was like his father, blonde and tall. Leah was like her mother, brunette and small. No one would ever mistake them for even being related but while they shared no familial blood, they were true brother and sister. He was the one who protected her from bullies and who always picked her up, whenever she fell down. He looked up at her and gave her a smile.

He, too, was going to miss his sister. When Leah started excelling in school and started skipping grades, it made him feel like he was stupid. But his mom and dad said he was a very smart kid. His grades had proved that. Dad had said, "I am probably sure that Leah is smarter than me, too, Matt. She is just exceptionally gifted." Leah always treated him the same, even though she was always in a higher grade than he was, plus she always helped him out with his homework. In high school, it was kind of weird, since he was a freshman and his little sister was a senior. But no matter, he was still proud of her, especially when she graduated as class valedictorian and had to deliver the speech at her graduation. She was the smallest kid on stage, both by age and size but she stood taller than all of them, when she received her trophies for the Most Outstanding Student and Highest GPA. His heart burst with pride for her that day. Yes, he was going to miss his sister.

After dinner, when everyone had left, it was time for Leah to open her presents. The rest of the Hunt children gathered around, eagerly, even though they all knew that the presents were not for them. The first present was a Mac Pro computer from Mom and Papa.

"Oh, my God, the new Mac Book Pro," Leah said. "I have been wanting this so badly, since it came out."

"Yeah," Cristina said. "I don't think Papa and I could have missed the picture of the computer that you slipped under our bedroom door."

"Well, it was just a hint," Leah said, shrugging her shoulders.

"I am just so glad that you like it," Owen said.

"I am so envious," Matt said, feeling the smoothness of the computer under his fingers.

"Don't worry, Matt," Owen said. "When you're ready to go to college, you will get a new laptop, too, with all of the bells and whistles."

"I will remember that," Matt said.

The grandparents (all three sets) were wise and had all decided to give her checks. It all came up to a grand total of $6,000. Leah had never had so much money in her life, before.

"Spend it wisely," Cristina said. "Your dad will be taking care of your living expenses but you shouldn't spend what your grandparents gave you, frivolously."

"I won't," Leah promised. There were a lot of other small presents from her Hunt cousins. The younger children – Elyse, Jakob and Lukas - had worked on a picture collage of the entire family and had put it in a large frame, decorated with seashells. "Thank you," she said, as she hugged her younger brothers and sister. The last present was from Matt. He handed it to her.

She opened it and gasped. It was a gold charm bracelet with several charms. "Each charm represents something in our lives. I had to look all over to get some of these. There is a small tropical fish because that is how we met. There is a princess and a Batman from our first Halloween. There is a flower basket from Mom and Dad's wedding because you fell down on the aisle and I picked you up. There is a violin because you used to play it for me, all of the time. There is a book because everyone knows you're the smartest girl. Finally, there is a graduation cap for when you graduate from college," Matt said. Leah burst into tears and hugged her brother. Cristina immediately started tearing up. She loved her kids so much.

"That's a wonderful present, Matt," Owen said, as he sniffled. He hugged his wife. They had raised such good kids.

"Thank you, everyone, for your presents," Leah said. "I am going to miss you so much." With the grown-ups, Leah and Matt all crying, the three younger ones started to cry, too. Only Amélie had no idea what was going on and wondered what was happening. Usually, she was the only one who was crying but today, it seemed like everyone else was crying. She just hugged her mother's legs.

* * *

><p>The next day, everyone was at the airport to say goodbye to Leah. "Now, remember, Leah, read all of the signs carefully," Cristina said. "Ask questions if you get lost in the airport."<p>

"Yes, mom, I know," Leah said.

"I already called your dad," Owen said. "He will be there at the airport, even before your plane arrives."

"Yes, papa, I know," Leah said. "I think I better go in. The security lines look long." First, she hugged her younger siblings, then Owen, then Matt.

"You better come home for Christmas," Matt said. He hugged his sister, tightly. They were going to miss each other so much.

"Yes, I am," Leah said. "You can bet on that."

Finally, she hugged her mother. Cristina was crying, freely. "My baby is leaving me. I never thought it would come this early. I thought I would have a couple more years."

Leah let her mother cry, as she wiped away her own tears.

"I gotta go, now, mom. I will be back for the holidays," Leah said. "That's just in a couple of months."

"Yes, yes," Cristina said, finally releasing her daughter. They watched as the small girl joined the security line. They watched until they could see her no more.

Everyone was quiet when they went home. Cristina was the saddest. She went to her bedroom and cried. Owen lay next to her and hugged her, close.

"Our first one, gone to college," Owen said. "Just think, we will have to do this, five more times."

"Oh, God," Cristina said. She could not bear the thought.

"It's okay, baby," Owen said. "They will leave us but we will always have each other."

Cristina looked up at him with love in her eyes.

**_THE END_**

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><p><strong>AN: So we have come to the end of another story. I hope you enjoyed reading about my AU CO family with lots of kids. Please leave your comments and tell me what you liked best about the story.**


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